Boeing Starliner’s first manned mission has been delayed again, this time due to a propellant leak and the need for additional testing, the company said Tuesday.
The aerospace company’s first Starliner mission, carrying two NASA astronauts into space, has been delayed until at least next week.
“Teams are now targeting a launch date no earlier than 4:43 pm EDT on Tuesday, May 21, to complete additional testing,” Boeing said. he said at launch.
The original liftoff date was May 17, but a “small” helium leak pushed the company’s Starline capsule’s journey to the International Space Station (ISS).
“Starliner teams are working to resolve a small helium leak detected in the spacecraft service module, located on a flange of a single thruster of the reaction control system,” Boeing said. “Helium is used in spacecraft thruster systems to enable thrusters to fire and is non-combustible and non-toxic.”
The delay comes a week after another launch attempt was canceled due to a valve problem. Last week’s pause was instituted by the United Launch Alliance (ULA) due to “an observation regarding a self-regulating liquid oxygen solenoid valve on the Centaur upper stage.”
Boeing has been developing the Starliner for more than a decade in hopes of giving NASA another U.S. spacecraft that can carry astronauts to and from the ISS.
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule carried astronauts for the first time in 2020. It was also built by NASA.
The Atlas 5 rocket, built by ULA, is responsible for launching the Starliner.
SpaceX has completed at least nine crewed missions, while Boeing has completed just two unmanned flights. For development, NASA gave $4 billion to Boeing and $2.6 billion to SpaceX.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
