Boeing Pushes Back First-Ever Crewed Launch of Starliner Astronaut Capsule Indefinitely Over Safety Concerns

Boeing is making another pushback for their already delayed Starliner astronaut launch. However, this time, the company didn't give a definite time for the next launch.

Boeing Delays Starliner Astronaut Launch

Due to safety concerns with the spacecraft's parachutes and wiring identified last week, Boeing is postponing the first-ever crewed launch of its Starliner astronaut capsule for NASA, possibly indefinitely.

The current target date for the Starliner astronaut launch, which is already years behind schedule, was July 21 to transport two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). Now, it's unlikely to fly this summer at all, and it might not even make a launch this year, Space.com reported.

Mark Nappi, vice president, and program manager for the Boeing Starliner, told reporters during a press conference Thursday that it's possible to launch its first-ever crewed launch. Still, he wouldn't want to commit to specific dates or times. He added that over the coming days, they must determine what to do to solve the problems.

2 Major Safety Issues For Boeing's Starliner

The most recent delay is caused by two significant safety flaws found last week during extensive evaluations of Starliner to certify the spacecraft for crewed flight, according to Nappi.

First, Boeing engineers learned that the failure load limit of the "soft links" utilized on the Starliner's three main parachutes' suspension lines is lower than previously believed. It turns out that if one chute fails, those linkages, which hold the parachute lines to their anchor tethers on the capsule, cannot support the weight of Starliner. According to Nappi, NASA has a safety requirement that all three chutes be capable of a safe landing.

The protective tape covering the wire harnesses throughout the Starliner capsule is the second safety problem that Boeing discovered. According to Nappi, there are "hundreds" of feet of this flammable tape within Starliner.

Nappi added that it was improbable that they would go in and rip this tape off because doing so may result in additional potential injury. So, to lower the possibility of a fire hazard, they are looking at alternatives that would effectively provide another form of wrapping over the current tape in the most vulnerable regions.

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Following a spate of failures for the spacecraft, Boeing has recently delayed the Starliner. Starliner's first unmanned test flight by Boeing in December 2019 failed to enter the right orbit and connect with the International Space Station.

Boeing was finally given 80 distinct remedial steps to resolve safety and other issues with the Starliner spaceship as a result of a subsequent NASA assessment. Additionally, the corporation had to launch a second unmanned test flight, which it did in May 2022 after several delays due to valve problems. The soft parachute links and flammable tape were present on that trip, but the mission was successful, according to NASA officials.

Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, two NASA astronauts, have been waiting and preparing for Starliner's first crewed flight, known as Crew Flight Test. That test flight was scheduled for February at the beginning of the year but has progressively been pushed back over the months. Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, two additional NASA astronauts initially scheduled to fly on the Starliner, were moved to fly on SpaceX's Dragon in 2021 to finish their missions.