Boeing, NASA and United Launch Alliance (ULA) are now aiming On June 2 at 12:03 pm ET, crew launch of Boeing's Starliner capsule after cleaning it less than 4 minutes before liftoff on June 1. If Sunday's launch occurs, it will be the first time Starliner, which has faced multiple delays, will fly with humans on board.
NASA says ULA is currently investigating why a computer, called a ground launch sequencer, did not enter “the correct operational configuration,” causing an automatic hold. During a later news conference, ULA CEO Tory Bruno said the problem was that one of the three redundant launch sequencers, which are used to control things like releasing connections to the rocket before launch, was slow to respond. He added that if a fix is “as simple as replacing a card,” the launch will occur on the 2nd. Otherwise, the launch will be delayed to June 5 or 6.
The flight is intended to take two American astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, to the International Space Station (ISS), where they will dock (NASA stream this live too). Wilmore and Williams will remain on the station for a week to conduct tests of Starliner and its subsystems before final certification of the spacecraft by NASA for rotation missions to the ISS.
Starliner is part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, which involves the agency working with private companies to develop new spacecraft. SpaceX is also part of this program and has launched NASA astronauts since 2020.
Update June 1, 2024, 3:16 pm ET: Updated to reflect that the release was canceled and that there is a new target release date.
