Space travel: Boeing's “Starliner” launch to the ISS will not be possible until May at the earliest

Looks good in a computer simulation: Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft was supposed to take people into space long ago, but is still in development

Photo: AFP PHOTO / NASA / Boeing

The first manned use of Boeing's Starliner capsule has been delayed – again.

Instead of April, as was last planned, the crisis-plagued spacecraft will not bring people to the international space station ISS until May.

The American space agency Nasa and the US aircraft manufacturer Boeing announced this in a press release on Friday.

This time the reason for this should not be technical problems, but rather “the scheduling of the space station”.

People have been flying to the ISS in the “Dragon” capsules from Elon Musk’s company SpaceX for four years now.

Competitor Boeing wanted to offer an alternative with the “Starliner,” also known as the CST-100.

After all, we are not only familiar with aircraft, but also with space travel: from the first Mercury capsule to Apollo and the space shuttles to current missions around the ISS - the large aviation company has always been involved.

However, due to numerous breakdowns, Boeing has had to postpone the launch of its own spacecraft several times in recent years.

First partial success only on the third attempt

The developers experienced their first bitter disappointment in December 2019. Although the “Starliner” took off for a test flight, the spacecraft never reached the ISS.

Due to a software problem, it consumed too much fuel, missed the required altitude and had to abort the flight after two days.

A second attempt was then announced, initially for 2020, then in 2021.

But eventually the capsule and spacecraft had to go back to the workshop because of valve problems.

It was only in the third attempt, in May 2022, that the “Starliner” reached the International Space Station for the first time with cargo on board.

At the time, NASA described the trip as a “milestone.”

From summer 2023, it was said, Boeing would finally transport people to the ISS.

A short time later, however, the authority and the company postponed the flight until spring 2024. There were problems with the parachute system and adhesive tape that is supposed to protect cables but turned out to be flammable, they said.

Ten days on the ISS

These errors are now considered to have been resolved and a new start is likely.

If there are no new abnormalities, a United Launch Alliance rocket will launch the “Starliner” into space from the Cape Canaveral spaceport in Florida in May.

Nasa astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will be on board.

The two are expected to stay on the ISS for at least ten days.

In September 2014, NASA awarded both Boeing and SpaceX the contract to develop astronaut taxis so that people can fly into space quickly, safely and at the same time significantly more cost-effectively than before.

The commercial companies are intended to ensure the USA's dominance in manned space travel.

Boeing and SpaceX, in turn, want to earn a lot from the program.

It's a multi-billion dollar business that has so far paid off especially for SpaceX.

The company has already completed several operational crewed missions with its “Falcon 9” rocket and the “Dragon” capsule.

“SpaceX Crew-8” has been running since the beginning of March.

Also there: Nasa astronaut Jeanette Epps, who was originally nominated as the third crew member for Boeing's "Starliner-1", but has now made it to the ISS well before the latest model.

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