As part of a partnership with the American space agency, the Boeing company will conduct a manned test flight with the Starliner capsule. On board, two astronauts, who must join the International Space Station. The Boe-CFT mission can be followed live.
The Starliner (Boe-CFT) mission in summary
- When ? On the night of May 6 to 7, at 4:34 a.m. (Paris time);
- Or ? At Cape Canaveral Launch Station, Florida;
- What ? The Boeing Crew Flight Test to reach the ISS.
What is Boeing's mission?
Boeing is due to join the International Space Station with its Starliner capsule. The American company achieved this for the first time in May 2022 with the Boe-OFT 2 flight, two and a half years after a first Boe-OFT 1 failure). But this time, there is an additional challenge: two American astronauts will be on board.
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A successful docking with the ISS is decisive for the rest of the program. If everything goes without difficulty, Boeing will be able to receive qualification from NASA to carry out regular transport missions between Earth and the ISS. This will give the United States a second option for commuting, in addition to SpaceX since 2020.
For this mission, the rocket will be provided by the United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, a defense giant that also has a foot in aerospace. The launcher will be the Atlas V model. The machine is today at the twilight of its career: it must give way to the Vulcan rocket during the decade.
The Starliner's manned flight took time to come to fruition, due to the difficulty for Boeing to meet all of NASA's requirements – indeed, the failure of December 2019 with Boe-OFT 1 had required profound changes. The flight was first hoped for the summer of 2023, before slipping to 2024. This time, it should be the right one.
Starliner will welcome two seasoned astronauts, Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams, who have 178 and 321 days in space under their belt. For both, this will be the third mission beyond the atmosphere. The stay on board the ISS should be brief, around a week. Their return to Earth should take place in mid-May.
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When does the Starliner depart?
The mission must leave on the night of May 6 to 7, at 4:34 a.m., according to the Paris time zone. This firing follows an empty test in May 2022, which was crowned with success (the previous one in December 2019, also unmanned, was a failure). The meeting with the International Space Station is set for May 8, at 6:48 a.m.
Where to see the start of the Starliner mission live?
The American space agency will broadcast the Starliner takeoff on his YouTube channel.
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