WASHINGTON — Boeing took one other loss on its CST-100 Starliner business crew program as the primary crewed flight of that vehicle stays in limbo.
In its fiscal second quarter financial results released July 26, the corporate said it took a $257 million loss on the Starliner program, citing the delay within the vehicle’s first flight with astronauts on board that Boeing and NASA announced June 1. That loss was the largest single think about a $527 million loss the corporate reported for its Defense, Space and Security business unit within the quarter.
The loss is the newest financial setback for Boeing on the fixed-price contract. The corporate has previously recorded $883 million in charges against earnings linked to Starliner, including $195 million within the third quarter of 2022. Those charges covered delays within the vehicle’s development and the associated fee to fly a second uncrewed test flight.
“On Starliner, we’re in lockstep with our customer. We’ve prioritized safety, and we’re taking whatever time is required. We’re confident in that team and committed to getting it right,” said David Calhoun, president and chief executive of Boeing, in an earnings call. He didn’t elaborate on those efforts or estimate how much time is required.
When NASA and Boeing announced the newest delay within the Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission, Mark Nappi, vice chairman and program manager for CST-100 Starliner at Boeing, said it was premature then to announce a brand new launch date, stating that the corporate needed “several days” to review the work needed to deal with parachute harness and wire tape issues that caused the delay.
During a July 25 NASA briefing in regards to the upcoming SpaceX Crew-7 mission to the International Space Station, Steve Stich, NASA business crew program manager, said the Starliner program had “stepped back” to take an in depth have a look at all elements of preparations for the crewed flight, a suggestion made by NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel shortly before the newest problems.
This system had found a brand new joint to be used within the parachute system that may meet the required factor of safety that the prevailing component fell wanting. “That joint is in testing straight away and we’re in the midst of taking a look at that joint and determining easy methods to get it into the chutes for flight,” he said.
Others have been removing tape for wire harnesses within the spacecraft that tests showed to be flammable. Stich said engineers had found another tape that isn’t flammable to make use of as a substitute.
Stich, though, didn’t offer a revised schedule for the CFT mission, which is able to carry NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station for a transient stay. That launch had been scheduled for July 21 before the delay.
“The work on Starliner is progressing well,” he said. “We’d like to step back slightly bit and try how all this work lines up. We’re not likely able to talk a launch opportunity yet.”
Stich said the main focus for now’s resolving the technical issues. NASA and Boeing will meet “when the time is true and pick a launch goal.”