Boeing Starliner

Or, you know, there's a limit to how long they can hold helium inside a pressure cylinder or dewar in Florida heat, and this new delay is simply refilling the system...
From what I understand, this is not normal bleed off, it is a legitimate leak.
 
launch is postpone after 25 May
do issue Helium leak in Service module.
seems they have to take SM apart to get to Helium System.
Doesn't surprise me. Boeing always packed critical systems into the most inaccessible places, even on 727s...

From what I understand, this is not normal bleed off, it is a legitimate leak.
*facepalm* Pass me some more crow, will ya?
 
Is there any viable business model for Starliner post ISS, assuming Boeing performs manned launches sometime in the next 5.5 years? Better question… what business would sign up for these endless delays?
 
Doesn't surprise me. Boeing always packed critical systems into the most inaccessible places, even on 727s...


*facepalm* Pass me some more crow, will ya?
Scott, no need to eat crow. Nobody in their wildest dreams would believe the string of errors and problems that Boeing either produced or encountered!
 
The 25th of May is now off the table for launch of Starliner & we should expect further delays.

Eric Berger
@SciGuySpace
NASA, but you've been doing a terrible job of providing updates on Starliner delays. This is a crewed mission. It really really matters. Already the 25th is off the table. There are rumors of longer delays. Space press has been asking for briefings for days. Do better
|
Casey Handmer, PhD @CJHandmer
Replying to @SciGuySpace
Do you think their communications confusion correlates with their technical confusion?
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Eric Berger
@SciGuySpace
I don't pretend to understand all of the complexities behind NASA's communication strategy regarding Starliner. But from the outside it appears poor, and non-responsive. What I'm hearing is not great news, so that may explain the reticence to engage.

View: https://twitter.com/SciGuySpace/status/1793044530075222226?t=cYshPYkzlddyHwdNYx_nxQ&s=19
 
If they fix it before July, the ISS can still welcome it. After this date however there will be a glut of crew and cargo vehicles for two months: and no room in the ISS docking / berthing schedule. Which mean Starliner would have to wait until september !

Unlike us common mortals, there ain't such thing as summer holidays at ISS. :D
 
I would like to see the Starliner get to the ISS before July but if it is taking longer than first thought to fix, I would not like Boeing to try and rush things for safety reasons.
 
The most atrocious exemple of trying to ram a manned spaceflight into an unforgiving schedule is STS-51L.
STS-61A own delays already had pushed it to the third week of January 1986, then repeated delays pushed it almost into february (January 28, 1986).
That year 1986 NASA schedule of 16 Shuttle flights was not only irrealistic, it was already compromised... and dangerous.
-The Shuttle would observe comet Halley with SPARTAN, and it was March 6, 1986 - or bust. Halley would not stay close from Earth afterwards.
-Galileo and Ulysses both needed the same launch window to Jupiter mid - May 1986, so it was that date: or bust, or 1988. Two Shuttle Centaurs stacked back to back, and launched a few days apart. Yeppee.
- Later in the year were Hubble launch and STS-62A, first Vandenberg flight.

And so they launched on January 28, 1986, even if the weather was atrocious (coldest ever, worst jetstream ever)

Sigh...
 
The Boca protesters are the cause of this delay...once they discovered the ring became a habitat for piping plovers.

The eventual test flight will be awesome--I've always wanted to see how well capsules do upon re-entry when Earth's atmosphere bloats after the Sun goes Red Giant....
 
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Launch is now the 1st June.

View: https://twitter.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1793433517809893621


A5/Starliner CFT: NASA is retargeting launch of Boeing's oft-delayed Starliner crew ship from this weekend to no earlier that 6/1, at 12:25pm EDT (1625 UTC). The delay will allow more time for data analysis and a repeat flight readiness review to better understand a small-but-persistent helium leak in the spacecraft's propellant pressurization system and its potential impact across all phases of flight. NASA plans to hold a teleconference with reporters Friday to discuss the testing to date and the path forward

View: https://twitter.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1793433696801829115


A5/Starliner CFT: A launching on 6/1 -- the same day SpaceX may be targeting for its next Super Heavy-Starship launch from Texas -- would result in docking at the ISS on 6/2 and landing at White Sands, New Mexico, on the morning of 6/10

View: https://twitter.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1793434061580505230


A5/Starliner CFT: Said Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich: "It has been important that we take our time to understand all the complexities of each issue including the redundant capabilities of the Starliner propulsion system and any implications to our Interim Human Rating Certification. We will launch Butch and Suni on this test mission after the entire community has reviewed the teams progress and flight rationale at the upcoming Delta Agency Flight Test Readiness Review.”

View: https://twitter.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1793434798418969010


A5/Starliner CFT: Stich was referring to Starliner commander Barry “Butch” Wilmore and co-pilot Sunita Williams, who remain at the Johnson Space Center in Houston practicing launch procedures in Boeing's flight simulator; NASA said they are staying in quarantine and "will fly back to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida closer to the new launch date”
 

NASA, Mission Partners Assessing Launch Opportunities for Crew Flight Test

Mission managers from NASA, Boeing, and ULA (United Launch Alliance) continue to evaluate a path forward toward launching the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test to the International Space Station. The teams are now working toward a launch opportunity at 12:25 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 1, with additional opportunities on Sunday, June 2, Wednesday, June 5, and Thursday, June 6.

Work continues to assess Starliner performance and redundancy following the discovery of a small helium leak in the spacecraft’s service module. As part of this work, and unrelated to the current leak which remains stable, teams are in the process of completing a follow-on propulsion system assessment to understand potential helium system impacts on some Starliner return scenarios. NASA also will conduct a Delta-Agency Flight Test Readiness Review to discuss the work that was performed since the last CFT launch attempt on May 6, and to evaluate issue closure and flight rationale ahead of the next attempt, as part of NASA’s process for assessing readiness. The date of the upcoming Flight Test Readiness Review is under consideration and will be announced once selected.

“There has been a great deal of exceptional analysis and testing over the last two weeks by the joint NASA, Boeing, and ULA teams to replace the Centaur Self Regulating Valve and troubleshoot the Starliner Service Module helium manifold leak,” said Steve Stich, manager, NASA Commercial Crew Program. “It has been important that we take our time to understand all the complexities of each issue including the redundant capabilities of the Starliner propulsion system and any implications to our Interim Human Rating Certification. We will launch Butch and Suni on this test mission after the entire community has reviewed the teams’ progress and flight rationale at the upcoming Delta Agency Flight Test Readiness Review.”

NASA, Boeing, and ULA officials will provide insight into the next targeted launch opportunity and updates regarding ongoing work during a media teleconference at 11 a.m. EDT Friday, May 24. NASA expects to issue a media advisory Thursday, May 23, with additional details for the call and how to participate.

Meanwhile, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams continue practicing in Starliner simulators to prepare for flight. The crew remains quarantined and will fly back to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida closer to the new launch date.

Author Danielle Sempsrott
Posted on May 22, 2024
Categories Boeing, Boeing Crew Flight Test, Commercial Crew, Commercial Crew Program, Commercial Spaceflight, Crew Flight Test, International Space Station, Kennedy Space Center, NASA, NASA Astronauts, United Launch AllianceTags Atlas V, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, CCP, CCSFS, SLC-41, Space Launch Complex 41, Starliner
 
"And lift-off of Boeing's Starliner... it's brave crew will be quite busy, but one hopes they have enough time to photograph Urth's fledgling new supercontinent...we asked the commander for comments:"

1001101001100001
 
Now that I have exhausted all time-related shots against the Welch-kins, I really do wish Team Starliner the best.

Kill this, and once again it is the engineers who take it in the shorts as the suits wallow in penthouses.

In all seriousness, take time to do things right.

Boeing needs to finish something for a change.

If worst comes to worst, at least the FAA will look silly for straining at Elon's gnats while Boeing's products rain down from the skies like so much aluminum dandruff.
 
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Summary of the Starliner call:
- Helium leak likely caused by a defective seal in flange; an isolated issue;
- Studies of that led to finding of a "design vulnerability" in propulsion system that could affect deorbit burn in rare circumstances; developed workaround for now.

View: https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1794046744432685478


NASA and Boeing proceeding with a June 1 launch with backup dates June 2, 5 and 6. A delay much beyond that, though, could run into life-limiting issues with Atlas 5 flight termination system forcing a much longer slip.

Here’s the archived video of the call referred to above:

View: https://youtu.be/hyoXOd8zKdI
 
The Space Bucket has just put out a video concerning the Strainer and its' leak:


Starliner is only days away from its first crewed launch however it’s running into a few complications. Earlier this month on the 8th was the spacecraft’s first launch attempt that was eventually scrubbed due to a valve problem not with the spacecraft but with the rocket. Fortunately for crews, while work was going on related to the Atlas V, an issue with Starliner was discovered.
This initially pushed the launch date back to an unknown date but has since been rescheduled for June 1st, in only a few days. The specific issue has to do with a helium leak in the reaction control system of Starliner. Interestingly, they might end up just leaving the leak and launching anyway. Here I will go more in-depth into the new launch date, the decision to leave the spacecraft as is, chances of more delays, and more.
Chapters:
0:40 - Leave The Leak
3:32 - Similar Problems


 
View: https://twitter.com/commercial_crew/status/1796225597334548964


#Starliner has made its way back to Space Launch Complex-41 atop a @ulalaunch Atlas V rocket ahead of the agency’s @BoeingSpace Crew Flight Test mission!

Weather remains 90% favorable for the June 1 liftoff at 12:25pm ET.

Latest updates: https://blogs.nasa.gov/boeing-crew-flight-test/

 
Boeing internal memo:

"Roll it out during the Trump verdict so no one will notice this walk of shame for the other..."
 
During today's Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test prelaunch news conference, it was mentioned that Blue Origin shared the data from the NS-25 chute failure with Boeing and SpaceX.

View: https://twitter.com/wapodavenport/status/1796603384235266452


FWIW, they said they were confident in the reefing line cutters on Starliner's chutes, which they said had been tested extensively, something like 160 times: "We've never seen an issue with any of our cutters. All the testing was really superb on cutting the reefing lines."
View: https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1796593013688570104


No technical issues being worked with either Starliner or the Atlas 5 and weather is still 90% go for Saturday and Sunday.
 
NASA has started its launch countdown on YouTube:


Watch live as two NASA astronauts launch from Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft as one of the final steps on the road to certification. Launch of the ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket and Starliner spacecraft is targeted for 12:25 p.m. EDT Saturday, June 1 (1625 UTC) from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
The launch attempt on May 6 was scrubbed due to a faulty oxygen relief valve observation on the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Centaur second stage.
The two NASA astronauts aboard, flight commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams, will test the end-to-end capabilities of the Starliner system, including launch, docking, and return to Earth. After a one-week stay docked to the International Space Station, the Starliner and crew will land under parachutes in the western United States.
Launch coverage on NASA+ (https://plus.nasa.gov) will end shortly after Starliner orbital insertion. NASA Television (https://nasa.gov/nasatv) will provide continuous coverage leading up to docking and through hatch opening and welcome remarks.
Learn more about the Commercial Crew Program: https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/...
https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev.../mission/boeing-crewflighttest/&v=aEi5boWupRk
 

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