Much more than two astronauts will be riding on the Boeing spaceship
A battered brand on the launchpad
Monday night is a big one for Boeing. The company is set to finally launch two astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) on the company’s Starliner spacecraft. It’s a launch that should have happened years ago.
Design problems, mistakes, and delays have now been dealt with and put behind the Boeing Defense and Space division. In the interim, however, the Boeing name has been diminished by the trouble in the Boeing Airplane division. The Boeing company needs a win. A lot is riding on this launch of two NASA astronauts.
Nearly five years ago a serious competition was underway between two companies to build the first private spacecraft to carry astronauts to the ISS. Bragging rights were at stake. The longtime NASA contractor Boeing was up against the upstart SpaceX that had built a reusable rocket. The NASA crews assigned to the SpaceX and Boeing spacecrafts acknowledged the head to head battle with a friendly game of capture the flag.
COMPETITION LOST
The last shuttle crew that docked with ISS left an American flag taped to the wall of the habitat. The game involved who could get to the ISS first and capture the flag and bring it back to Earth. It ended up not being much of a game. SpaceX won that battle when its DM2 mission made it to ISS in 2020. SpaceX has since carried eight NASA crews to the station while Boeing has struggled with test flight issues and manufacturing problems just to get Starliner to the launch tower with astronauts.
This weekend the spacecraft atop an Atlas V rocket rolled out to the launch pad. The weather looks good for a 10:34 PM ET launch. Veteran astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams say they are, “go for launch.” The two are expected to spend about a week on ISS testing out the vehicle- a step helping Boeing’s attempt to gain certification for the spacecraft. Starliner is contracted to carry six crews to the station over the next several years.
BOEING SAFETY CULTURE
Boeing says it is confident about this launch. That doesn’t mean there haven’t been questions about recent headlines questioning safety protocols in Boeing’s jet factories and what that means for this Boeing spacecraft.
Mark Nappi, the top Boeing executive on the Starliner program, told reporters, “safety and quality were always the number one priority.”
Two NASA executives went farther trying to draw a line between safety systems on the Boeing jetliner assembly line and safety protocols in the spacecraft factory. It’s integration they say. The agency and the contractor working together hand in hand.
“NASA has been side by side with Boeing, a little different than the aircraft [side]. I say we have inspection points on the vehicle… we have people side by side inspecting… a lot of individual care and feeding goes into every single one of those spacecraft and NASA side by side with Boeing,” said NASA’s Steve Stitch.
NASA’s Dana Weigel runs the ISS program and reminded reporters that Boeing built much of the station and is responsible for keeping it running. She too tried to differentiate the Boeing space program from the aviation side of the house. “We do have a very different integrated approach in the aerospace-human spaceflight sides. I just want to remind folks that this is not Boeing's first time to deal with the human spaceflight safety,” Weigel told reporters.
The NASA Administrator has spoken to Boeing’s CEO, but not since the trouble with the door panel that blew out of an Alaska Airlines 737. Sen. Bill Nelson gave his seal of approval, telling reporters, “this is a clean spaceship and it is ready to launch.”
IMPORTANT TEST
As the NASA executives continued to point out, “this is a test flight [named CFT-Crewed Flight Test]. This is only the seventh time in its history that NASA has test flown a new crew vehicle.
NASA’s Steve Stitch, Boeing’s Mark Nappi, and ISS Program Manager Dana Weigel talk about differences in safety protocols between the human space program and Boeing’s jetliner business. (Credit: NASA)
NASA’s move to commercial carriers for cargo and crew was designed to have multiple providers. That’s the case on the cargo side. A certification of Starliner will finally make the same true on the crew side. Multiple spacecraft make it easier for NASA to deal with unexpected scenarios on ISS.
The ISS has at least seven more years of service in orbit. If Boeing’s CFT flight is a success, NASA will be closer to achieving its goal, several years late and Boeing will get a win. Good news is something Boeing could undoubtedly use.
Interesting piece. Nice shot of the author during the 2018 visit! What is difficult to understand about the troubles for Boeing is why SpaceX could be so far ahead of them on delivering crew to the ISS? I suppose there a many different considerations. How would you like to be those 2 astronauts!? Safety first! Nice piece.