The long-awaited crewed launch of Starliner has gained increased positivity that its latest launch date will remain on course, following quite a few slips because the maiden uncrewed flight to the International Space Station (ISS).
While NASA postponed the NET launch date for the Starliner crew flight test (CFT) is now set for April 14, 2024 as a result of scheduling reasons, NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) – a historically conservative body by nature – cited hope that Boeing’s latest issues with the spacecraft are coming to an in depth for a launch in April. This was followed by the NASA Advisory Council (NAC) citing the particular launch date goal.
Starliner accomplished two uncrewed flight tests, with the primary being the infamous mission in December 2019, which revealed quite a few software problems and failed to succeed in the International Space Station (ISS).
The second was Orbital Flight Test-2, which docked to the Station on May 21, 2022, following a launch two days prior from Kennedy.
The spacecraft remained docked to the ISS for 4 days before successfully landing on the White Sands Missile Range in Latest Mexico, this time with only more minor problems, similar to issues with backup thrusters throughout the flight.
During a previous meeting in May, the panel had been somewhat critical of Starliner´s progress and warned to not launch too early while bypassing potential questions of safety. That was a number of days before Boeing and NASA had to confess the flammability issues with some tape used inside the capsule and safety concerns concerning the parachutes.
Now, the ASAP members are way more optimistic concerning the path to launch following months of labor to mitigate the most recent issues.
“The ASAP believes it’s important to have two crew providers and is pleased to see progress,” said Kent Rominger, a former Shuttle astronaut with five flights under his belt, two as a commander. “Boeing has been responsive; tape removal within the upper dome is complete, while the work within the lower dome must be accomplished in a number of weeks. The parachutes´ soft link joints are being redesigned, and a drop test is upcoming.
“NASA and Boeing are working through the battery redesign plan, and the CFT batteries have been approved for flight. The ASAP was pleased to see the independent reviews.”
This positive review from a figure, as noted by Rominger, bears loads of value. He was the Head of the Astronaut Office at NASA throughout the Columbia tragedy in 2003. He belongs to a NASA generation who has the importance of a correct safety culture and the horrible consequences of an absence of such ingrained of their DNA.
The ASAP cited the NET date for CFT is around April 2024, with Boeing still targeting March for having every thing checked, verified, approved, and prepared on the technical side. Other aspects are in play, similar to the ISS’ Visiting Vehicle (VV) schedule to seek out a placeholder for Starliner to dock on the orbital outpost. Nevertheless, the NAC provided an update with a particular NET 14th of April date.
![](https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/NSF-2021-04-02-22-45-33-965-1170x704-1.jpg)
Starliner docking with Dragon already on the ISS, via L2 Render Artist Mack Crawford.
The clearance of the most recent issues includes the P-213 tape referenced within the last update.
The issues with the flammability of the P-213 tape used on Starliner caught Boeing and NASA by surprise. The tape is wrapped around wiring harnesses to guard the wiring from potential abrasions or nicks – and is used lots in other spacecraft, including on the ISS.
Nevertheless, it’s flammable under specific conditions which may arise after one other failure on board happened – a fact present in extensive testing in preparation for the CFT launch.
“This can be a tape that’s widely used across the aerospace industry for a lot of applications for shielding wires from abrasion. I might say within the NASA database, the entries were a bit inconsistent relative to the flammability of that tape at various levels of oxygen concentration. And so, it was a bit confusing as to when it could possibly be used and when it couldn’t”, NASA´s Business Crew Program manager had said at a press conference in August.
As Rominger stated on the ASAP, removing the tape within the lower a part of the spacecraft remains to be ongoing at KSC but must be accomplished inside the coming weeks. Any remaining tape in some places difficult to access or deemed uncritical will undergo a final evaluation to ensure an appropriate risk level.
One other issue to be cleared related to the parachutes, with the newly designed drogue and fundamental parachute soft-link joints and stronger fundamental cover suspension lines might be installed on the CFT spacecraft until the tip of the yr, with a drop test planned now for the start of 2024. Initially, this test had been scheduled for “on the very earliest at the tip of November 2023.”
Boeing can be working on a radiator bypass valve issue discovered during ground operations. To stop this from happening again, the hardware has been modified. Future options to enhance the system further are considered, including a system purge to stop stiction, component upgrades, and changes to the way in which of operating the system.
Once all these issues have been signed off and cleared for flight, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams might be tasked with performing the primary crewed mission of the spacecraft.
They proceed to coach for his or her mission going through simulations of all phases of flight along with Mission Control at Johnson Space Center (JSC) and other support teams. At the identical time, requirements regarding manual crew control of the spacecraft and abort system evaluation, that are essential for his or her safety, have been reached and are soon to be finally closed out.
On the software side, qualification testing of the CFT flight software is accomplished. Hardware and software integration testing remains to be ongoing at Boeing.
On the pure hardware side, Starliner´s crew and repair module are already mated with normal preflight processing coming up.
The ULA Atlas V rocket is already at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, and the mixing process with the spacecraft should begin soon after a successful drop test.