Trevor Mohlman
It’s been five weeks since the Boeing Starliner spacecraft returned from a largely successful test flight to the International Space Station, and the company continues to review mission data along with NASA engineers.
So far there has been no offer. In fact, sources say the Starliner’s relatively clean performance has raised the likelihood that the craft will make its first manned flight this year in December.
This mission, called Crew Flight Test, will likely carry two astronauts to the space station. If successful, it would pave the way for long-term operational missions to the space station in 2023 and give NASA a second, desirable way to send astronauts into space.
Two weeks ago, NASA publicly announced that veteran astronauts Butch Willmore and Sonny Williams would be the main crew for this test flight. NASA also said that a short-term mission with two astronaut test pilots is sufficient to meet all test objectives for flight testing. However, the agency added, this mission could be extended or shortened depending on the station’s staffing needs. For example, NASA said it could add an astronaut and extend the mission if the need arises.
However, based on NASA’s internal timetables, it appears the agency could opt for a shorter six-day flight. According to the revised schedule this week, the Starliner test flight showed a launch date of December 8, with the subsequent docking of the space station from December 9 to December 14.
This date is far from being engraved in stone. It is undergoing modification for a number of reasons, including an ongoing review of data from Starliner’s first test flight in May, as well as the availability of a docking port on the space station. However, the fact that such a date now appears in the calendar indicates a reasonable possibility that Starliner will make a second flight this year.
NASA spokesman Josh Finch said the agency was not ready to set an official launch date for the Boeing crew flight test.
“Boeing is preparing equipment for the company’s manned flight test this year,” Finch said. “The Starliner team is working to provide the first unmanned flight test data to NASA and jointly identify future work prior to the manned flight. Program and engineering reviews are continuing, culminating in an assessment of the launch schedule around the end of July based on spacecraft readiness, space station planning needs, and eastern range availability.”
After this assessment, Finch said, NASA plans to provide a status update, which will likely include a launch target.
One of the main factors is the availability of the docking port. There are two ports on the space station equipped with an “international docking adapter”, which must be shared by Crew Dragon, Cargo Dragon 2 and Starliner from SpaceX. In the summer and fall, NASA currently has three SpaceX mission flights that will use these ports: the CRS-25 and -26 cargo missions and the Crew-5 launch. Currently, however, a docking port is available from December 1 to January 14. Next, SpaceX’s CRS-27 cargo mission will need a backup port.
Assuming there are no more major launch slips for SpaceX vehicles and assuming Starliner gets a healthy bill of health from its data review, this window will likely match when Boeing and NASA choose the next Starliner flight.