Boeing Starliner spacecraft takeoff postponed once more

NASA introduced that the Boeing Starliner spacecraft’s first manned house flight, initially scheduled for Saturday, has been postponed once more, with out specifying a brand new liftoff date.

“The subsequent liftoff alternative continues to be being mentioned,” NASA mentioned in a press release to reporters late Tuesday night. The launch of this mission to the International Space Station (ISS), which is so necessary to Boeing and has been ready for thus a few years, has already been delayed a number of occasions.

small helium leak

The most up-to-date drawback is a “small helium leak” detected on the spacecraft, introduced final week by NASA, which ordered the automobile from Boeing a decade in the past to move astronauts to the ISS. The U.S. house company mentioned Tuesday that “there may be nonetheless work to be completed” and promised to supply “extra particulars” as quickly as attainable.

The liftoff was canceled on the final minute on May 6 attributable to a valve drawback within the rocket whereas the 2 astronauts who made up the crew had been already aboard, which has now been repaired. However, new launch makes an attempt have since continued to be delayed attributable to helium leaks. Starliner’s growth is years not on time attributable to a sequence of disagreeable surprises, together with the primary check flight to the ISS with no crew lastly going down in 2022.

As a outcome, Boeing misplaced to SpaceX, which has already served as an area taxi for NASA astronauts since 2020. But the U.S. house company want to have a second automobile that will be higher capable of handle emergencies that will happen on the station or issues that will come up on the house station. This is without doubt one of the capsules.