Takeoff of the Starliner spacecraft, developed by Boeing, that he should have brought NASA astronauts on the International Space Stationwas canceled about two hours before time expected due to a technical problem. She has been identified an anomaly in a valve on the Atlas V rocket which was supposed to push the capsule into orbit, announced the carrier’s manufacturer, the ULA group. “NASA’s priority is safety,” the head of the US space agency, Bill Nelson, immediately explained. Takeoff will take place “when we are ready”, he wrote on X.
A new takeoff attempt could theoretically take place today but for the moment no date has been announced. Other possibilities are Friday or Saturday. Boeing is betting big on this mission which should allow it to enter the select club of spacecraft that have transported humans to the ISS. The American giant must demonstrate that its vehicle is safe before it can begin regular missions to the Space Station. All with four years behind SpaceX. The take-off of the American astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams it was scheduled for 10.34pm local time from Cape Canaveral in Florida, when it was late at night in Italy. At first, preparations had gone well: the astronauts had settled into their seats, the rocket had been filled with fuel and the weather was ideal.
Even for NASA, which ordered this vehicle ten years ago, the stakes are high: having a second vehicle in addition to the SpaceX one to transport American astronauts “is very important”, underlined Dana Weigel, ISS program manager . Weigel explained that this capability would make it easier to respond to “different scenarios” in the event of an emergency, such as a problem with one of the spacecraft. The success of this mission is highly anticipated by Boeing which, in the last few years, has had to face several safety problems of its aircraft. But the Starliner development program itself has turned into a saga marked by unpleasant surprises and setbacks.
In 2019, during a first uncrewed test, the capsule failed to position itself on the right trajectory and returned without reaching the Space Station. Then in 2021, just as the rocket was on the launch pad to attempt flight again, a problem with stuck valves forced the postponement. The empty spacecraft finally managed to reach the ISS in May 2022. Boeing then hoped to make the first crewed flight in the same year. But problems discovered later, particularly with the parachutes that slow the capsule as it reenters the atmosphere, again created delays. “There were several surprises that we had to overcome,” Boeing manager Mark Nappi said at a news conference. But “this has made our teams very strong”, he assured. “It’s quite typical that the development of a human spacecraft takes ten years,” he added.