When Suni Williams was assigned to fly on board Boeing Starliner flight in 2018, no one anticipated it would be a six-year wait for launch.
Williams and commander Butch Wilmore are now expected to launch on the 10-day Crew Test Flight no earlier than May 6.
Wilmore and Williams, in fact, were initially assigned to the operational and six-month-long Starliner-1 mission scheduled to fly after CFT.
Related: 1st Boeing Starliner astronauts are ready to launch to the ISS for NASA (exclusive) Both Boeing and Space were tasked in 2014 to bring NASA astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard commercial crew spacecraft.
SpaceX has been doing so operationally since 2020, while Starliner had to wait to address numerous technical issues.
(Boeing, NASA and the astronauts all stress that the relevant problems have been addressed ahead of launch day.)
While the spacecraft is certified for an astronaut test flight, the work is not over.
“We are trained in flight test, and by the good Lord’s allowing, we are now in a position for spaceflight test — which not a lot of people have had the opportunity to do.
It was not anticipated that there would be a six-year wait for launch when Suni Williams was assigned to fly on board a Boeing Starliner in 2018.
The seasoned NASA astronaut and previous U.S. S. A Navy test pilot discussed on March 22 the “emotional rollercoaster” that the Starliner team had to endure in the years following the pandemic, two unmanned test flights, and a number of other technical problems that needed to be resolved before astronauts could be safely launched.
Even though the work in between the years was intense, it was a “test pilot’s dream” that is now finally being realized. Williams and commander Butch Wilmore are now anticipated to take off no earlier than May 6 for the 10-day Crew Test Flight. In the present moment, Williams stated, “I don’t think I would really want to be anywhere else.”.
Indeed, Wilmore and Williams were originally tasked with the six-month operational Starliner-1 mission, which was supposed to take off following CFT. In the years that followed, there were numerous other crew changes, but Starliner remained a reliable spacecraft, as Williams told reporters during a press conference held at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Relative: NASA’s first Boeing Starliner crew members are prepared to take off for the International Space Station.
In 2014, NASA assigned Boeing and Space the mission of delivering astronauts from NASA to the International Space Station (ISS) using commercial crew spacecraft. Starliner had to wait to resolve multiple technical issues, but SpaceX has been operating in this capacity since 2020. (NASA, Boeing, and the astronauts emphasize that all pertinent issues have been resolved before launch day. ( ).
Even though the spacecraft is approved for a test flight with astronauts, work remains to be done. During the same press conference, retired Navy test pilot Wilmore emphasized that CFT is a developmental mission. This implies that the training program is being developed on the fly by the astronauts, their support staff, and even the Starliner-1 crew, which is currently scheduled for launch in 2025. Not insignificantly, the spacecraft is also evolving.
Williams told reporters, “We are kind of the trailblazers, if you will, getting those training processes in place and developing them.”. He added later that having that mentality necessitates seeing beyond a “finish line” and establishing precise deadlines for each mission milestone.
“We have received training in flight testing, and with God’s grace, we are now qualified to participate in spaceflight testing, something that not many people have been able to do. We also take that very seriously,” Williams remarked. We thus consider the current tasks, those that are near at hand or that we are working on at the moment, but we also constantly keep the long-term goal in mind. Hence, I don’t concentrate on reaching the finish. “.”.
See also: Boeing starts filling the Starliner capsule before the first astronaut takes off.
With years of additional experience, Williams said she is confident that NASA and Boeing have considered all the little things for their shakedown mission, including the addition of multiple backups for systems and procedures.
Without any communications, the spacecraft could execute all of its major operations. Not only can the astronauts take control of any automated system during landing or docking to guide Starliner in the proper direction, but they are also highly skilled in launch aborts and other pivotal procedures.
Since Starliner’s first unmanned flight test in 2019 failed to get it to the International Space Station (ISS), Williams stated, “I feel like we’ve invested the time.” After all, Starliner succeeded in reaching the ISS on its second attempt in 2022. Later in the conference, she stated that the team is “pretty sharp” since “we’ve gone through this process together.”. “.
“We thoroughly investigated and learned everything we could about the spacecraft, and we made the necessary adjustments where we believed it was necessary,” the speaker continued. Because we have experience with ., I believe we are prepared to move forward. that phase of development. We became aware that it wasn’t quite finished, and we have since worked to ensure that it is. Everything is prepared. ****.
Wilmore stated he is allowing himself to reflect on the feelings of launch day as the years of training are coming to an end. “It’s a great seat to be in,” he said, adding that he was looking forward to walking to the pad and the launch. ****.
Williams continued by saying that she finds it hard to believe she will be going into space for the first time in twelve years, having launched on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft in 2012. (Wilmore hadn’t taken a flight in nearly as long—2015. She said that going into quarantine will make it feel more real, even though the crew is not quite on board CFT yet.
That will eventually amount to nothing more than frosting on the cake. When it comes to quarantine, Williams stated that almost everything is finished by then. “I really can’t wait until we see space station through the window,” is another well-known sight to anticipate following launch. That is going to be awesome. “.”.
