The highly anticipated first crewed flight of Boeing’s Starliner spaceship faced a dramatic postponement just hours before launch as officials identified a new safety concern on Monday, dealing a fresh setback to the US aerospace giant.
Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were moments away from liftoff when the call for a “scrub” was made, halting the launch to allow engineers to investigate anomalous readings from an oxygen relief valve on the rocket’s second stage.
“Standing down on tonight’s attempt to launch,” tweeted NASA chief Bill Nelson. “As I’ve said before, @NASA’s first priority is safety. We go when we’re ready.”
This delay adds to the challenges Boeing is facing amid a safety crisis in its commercial aviation division.
The test flight, beset by years of delays, holds significant importance for NASA, seeking a reliable commercial partner to transport astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) alongside SpaceX.
Clad in Boeing’s signature bright blue spacesuits, the astronauts exited the spacecraft and left the launch tower at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, returning to their quarters.
The next potential launch windows are on Tuesday, followed by Friday and Saturday, pending resolution of the issue.
Starliner, propelled by an Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, will be piloted manually by the crew once in orbit to test its capabilities.
The astronauts, both Navy-trained pilots and space program veterans, have each visited the ISS twice, traveling on shuttles and Russian Soyuz vessels.
Starliner, resembling a gumdrop-shaped capsule with cabin space similar to an SUV, is slated to rendezvous with the ISS for a week-long stay. Following tests to verify its functionality, the crew will return to Earth for a parachute-assisted landing.
Success in this mission would help overcome setbacks from previous Starliner flights, including software defects and hardware issues, which delayed its certification for NASA missions.
Boeing’s Starliner and SpaceX’s Dragon capsules are part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, aiming to reduce reliance on Russian rockets for ISS transport.
Despite the setbacks, the program marks a shift for NASA, relying on private partners like Boeing and SpaceX for spaceflight services. Once fully operational, both capsules could play a role in future private space station ventures.
