NASA’s new manned spacecraft estimated to ready by March, officials say
The Boeing Starliner spacecraft will be tested with newly designed parachutes and soft links, with a drop test likely scheduled for late November. NASA/Frank Michaux
The agency is working with Boeing to remediate two issues with the Starliner spacecraft ahead of an anticipated crew flight test, but a specific launch date remains uncertain.
NASA officials said Monday they estimate that the Boeing Starliner spacecraft could be flight-ready by early March, though they did not offer a launch date for the vehicle.
On a teleconference with reporters Monday, Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew Program, said the vehicle is expected to be ready for NASA by the spring, but its ultimate schedule will depend on determining the available launch windows for Starliner.
“We are now working with NASA Commercial Crew Program, ISS and [the United Launch Alliance] on potential launch dates based on our readiness,” he said. “We will work that the next several weeks and see where we can get fit in and then we will set a launch date.”
The Starliner, along with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, are the two manned vehicles NASA selected in 2014 to transport astronauts to the International Space Station and on low Earth orbit missions. SpaceX began launching manned missions to the ISS in 2020, while the Starliner has had two unmanned orbital tests, including docking with the ISS in May 2022.
Originally slated to conduct a two-astronaut crewed flight test to the ISS this year, Starliner was delayed in May due to problems with its parachute system’s soft links — which help manage the weight of the spacecraft on the parachutes’ lines upon reentry — alongside concerns over the potential flammability of P-213 tape used to cover and protect wire harnesses within the vehicle.
Steve Stich, program manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, said on the call that the parachute soft links have been redesigned and were being tested by NASA following a “thorough review of the entire parachute system.”
NASA and Boeing officials said they were in the process of either removing the P-213 tape from the vehicle or remediating the possibility of it becoming flammable in the areas where it cannot be excised.
“If it comes an area where the tape is going to be difficult to remove and we could possibly cause damage, then we will look at another remediate technique,” said Nappi, who noted that more than 80% of the tape has been removed from the upper dome of the Starliner and that Boeing was beginning to work on the bottom dome of the vehicle.
The Starliner will be tested with newly designed parachutes and soft links, with a drop test likely scheduled for late November, Nappi said. From there, once certified, the Starliner will conduct a two-astronaut crewed test flight to dock with the ISS before its first mission.
Stich said that the launch windows for crewed ISS missions have traditionally occurred in February and August slots, but it’s too early to tell whether the mission would happen in 2024 or 2025.