Boeing’s first astronaut flight canceled in latest setback

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A last-minute problem scuppered Saturday’s attempted launch of Boeing’s first astronaut flight, the latest in a series of delays over the years.

Two NASA astronauts were strapped into the company’s Starliner capsule when the countdown was automatically stopped at 3 minutes and 50 seconds by the computer system controlling the final minutes before liftoff.

With only a fraction of a second to take off, there was no time to resolve the last issues and everything was cancelled. It was not immediately clear why the computers aborted the countdown.

Launch controllers were evaluating the data, said Dillon Rice of United Launch Alliance. But it’s possible the team could try again on Sunday, depending on what went wrong.

Technicians rushed to the pad to help astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams exit the capsule atop the fully fueled Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. An hour after the launch abort, the hatch was reopened.

It was the second launch attempt. The first attempt, on May 6, was postponed for leak checks and rocket repairs.

NASA wants a backup from SpaceX, which has been transporting astronauts since 2020.

Boeing was supposed to launch its first crew around the same time as SpaceX, but its first test flight without anyone on board in 2019 was plagued by serious software problems and never reached the space station.

A redo in 2022 performed better, but problems with parachutes and flammables later caused further delays. A small helium leak in the capsule’s propulsion system last month occurred due to a problem with the rocket’s valve.

More valve problems arose two hours before Saturday’s planned liftoff, but the team used a backup circuit to get ground equipment valves working to supply fuel to the rocket’s upper stage. Launch controllers were relieved to continue moving forward, but the computer system known as the ground launch sequencer terminated the effort.

“Of course this is emotionally disappointing,” said NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, the backup pilot, from the nearby Kennedy Space Center.

But he said delays are part of spaceflight. “We have a big release in our future.”