These are sad times for Boeing, and their current crewed flight test (CFT) of the Starliner spacecraft for NASA is the latest example. This isn’t just the aviation industry. Boeing spent a decade getting their spacecraft right, invested over $4 billion in it, and conducted two unmanned tests because the first failed. Boeing’s woes continue now with the current problematic crewed test mission of the Starliner spacecraft.
As expected, both NASA and Boeing are downplaying the situation, claiming that “space exploration is hard.” The capsule is nothing new, and neither is the Atlas V rocket they acquired. SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft has flown multiple missions over the past few years and performed just fine. These newbies are becoming pros. So what’s Boeing’s excuse?
Helium leaks and thruster problems
The current CFT mission was Starliner’s third flight test, but the first with crew aboard. Of course, you have to do flight tests to fix any issues that can only be discovered in flight. However, even after the two previous tests, the capsule experienced another problematic mission, forcing the crew to remain on the International Space Station (ISS) until the issues were resolved and both NASA and Boeing were confident that Starliner could return safely. As of the time of this article’s publication, no return date has been announced.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on June 5. Soon after, however, problems began to arise.
Five separate leaks were detected in the helium system that pressurizes the spacecraft’s propulsion system. Five of the Starliner’s 28 Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters also failed as the crew attempted to rendezvous with the International Space Station.
After some troubleshooting, the four RCS thrusters were restored to operation and able to dock safely, but this left many questions and concerns about a safe return, which made people wonder why an established aerospace giant like Boeing was unable to solve the problem after spending so much time and money.
Boeing and NASA make long stay in space to analyze data
The control systems are necessary for the safe undocking and unseating of the International Space Station. They are also necessary for the deorbit burn, separation of the crew module from the service module for re-entry, and for a successful re-entry.
The mission was originally scheduled to undock and return to Earth on June 14. However, engineers and mission managers canceled several return attempts, citing the need to analyze more data. Now, they will not be able to return until early July, after some unrelated, previously scheduled spacewalks.
NASA claims that in an emergency, the crew can return to Earth on the Starliner. If this is true, why haven’t they returned yet?
NASA and Boeing insist that the crew can leave at any time in an emergency. They claim that the Starliner remains at the ISS so that engineers can study the service module’s helium system, as they cannot study it on the ground because the service module will burn up during re-entry.
Of course, no one wants to see another crew member die. If necessary, the Starliner crew can stay on the ISS for a while and then return to Earth aboard another spacecraft.
However, the Starliner CFT will only stay on the ISS for 45 days. Future spacecraft could stay for up to six months.
NASA has allocated billions of dollars to develop Starliner and Dragon. SpaceX is on its eighth long-duration manned mission. Starliner is still nowhere to be found.
When NASA retired its shuttle fleet in 2011, Congress ordered the agency to promote commercial development to take over human and cargo missions to the International Space Station. They even allowed them to sell services for new spacecraft to private customers. SpaceX is already doing this. Boeing has said they have no plans to do so. In the meantime, NASA will turn its focus to SLS/Artemis and returning to the Moon to establish a long-term human presence.
After the crash of STS-107 Columbia, the Bush administration ordered the retirement of the space shuttle fleet. During the Obama administration, NASA was ordered to promote private development and began Commercial Aircrew Program.
After the landing of the space shuttle Atlantis on STS-135, the United States became completely dependent on Russia to transport NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station on a $70 million ticket-a-piece, 1960s-era state-of-the-art aircraft.
Meanwhile, NASA signed contracts with Boeing and SpaceX in 2014 to begin developing vehicles to return human orbiters to the U.S. mainland.
NASA has abandoned a very promising contract with Sierra Nevada for a “mini-space shuttle” called Dream Chasercan land on almost any runway in the country. It was a popular choice along with SpaceX. Boeing, which has close ties to NASA and the government, ultimately won the contract.
NASA did eventually get a cargo contract for Dream Chaser, but they were supposed to get a crew contract in 2014. The first cargo Dream Chaser is set to launch from Florida later this year.
Having two providers would provide the U.S. with redundancy if one spacecraft were to experience an accident or be temporarily inoperable. This means that if one U.S. spacecraft stops flying, another would still be available, rather than having to rely on the Russian Soyuz.
Boeing was already working with NASA and was awarded $4.6 billion for this. The Atlas V rocket is already a proven heavy-lift rocket, but needs to be improved to be certified for the crew class. Boeing was awarded the launch pad and rocket, but needs to build the crew class access tower.
SpaceX was awarded half that amount, $2.6 billion, and must prove the value of its new Falcon 9 rocket within a few years. NASA knows SpaceX has to do more work because it is a newcomer to the field.
Guess who was the first to return a crewed spacecraft to U.S. soil? SpaceX accomplished this goal a few years before Boeing, carrying out its first crewed test flight for NASA in 2020.
The problem of interstellar lines is not new
In December 2019, Starliner conducted an unmanned orbital flight test, but it did not go well. Soon after entering orbit, Starliner experienced an automatic timing problem. Flight controllers canceled the docking with the International Space Station and instead placed Starliner in an unplanned stable orbit to complete other key mission test objectives, including deorbit, reentry, and landing. Two days later, it returned to Earth.
Although Boeing said it was a good test flight, NASA was not convinced. Boeing offered to re-fly at its own expense. In March 2020, a joint NASA/Boeing independent review team found three major anomalies – the culprits were two software coding errors and an unexpected loss of air-to-ground communications. Before re-running the flight test, they ordered more than 80 recommendations covering testing and simulation, changes to board documents and safety culture.
Before the second launch, Starliner had more problems. On the launch pad, some valves connected to the Starliner’s abort and maneuvering thrusters failed to open as designed during the countdown, causing the launch to fail.
Boeing decided to replace the OFT-2 service module, which is currently experiencing some problems in orbit, with the service module previously planned for the CFT mission.
OFT-2 was eventually launched in May 2022, and although it encountered some minor problems, the mission achieved the remaining test objectives of OFT-1 and was successful.
Retired shuttle astronaut Chris Ferguson was scheduled to command the first test of the Starliner spacecraft, but he later resigned
Retired NASA astronaut Chris Ferguson commanded the STS-135 mission. He then joined Boeing to command the first Starliner CFT mission. However, he later withdrew from the mission, citing family matters over the next year. This was his public excuse, and he has stuck to it ever since.
Ferguson remains involved with the Starliner program, though, as a crew chief and mission operations manager. “I’ll also be in a supporting role, being the eyes and ears of the CFT crew,” he said. That job includes tracking the spacecraft during testing and “making sure we’re paying the right amount of attention to issues that need to be addressed.”
Looking ahead
Although the road has been full of ups and downs for Boeing and Starliner, they are nearing the finish line of receiving NASA certification to begin flying missions. As of today, the mission has completed 77 of the 87 required flight test objectives, with the remaining 10 scheduled to be completed during undocking, reentry, and landing.
“We’re strategically using the extra time to clear the way for some critical space station activities while fully preparing Butch and Suni for their return to Starliner and gaining valuable insights into system upgrades we’d like to perform during post-certification missions,” said Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
There are three locations where Starliner can land after it detaches from the International Space Station: White Sands Spaceport (WSSH) in New Mexico, Wilcox Playa in Arizona, and Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.
The crew will then fly by helicopter to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, while the spacecraft will be taken elsewhere for engineers to examine.
Once Starliner successfully completes the test program and is certified by NASA, Boeing will fly at least two and up to six crewed missions to the International Space Station for NASA. This will provide the United States with redundancy in low-Earth orbit human spaceflight with multiple operators.
Avgeekery’s Mike Killian has extensive on-the-ground experience covering NASA’s space program full-time since 2009. He has seen the program grow from the end of the shuttle era to the birth of the Commercial Crew Program, and has covered every major development milestone since the contracts with Boeing and SpaceX were signed 10 years ago.
