(Boeing)
NASA and Boeing have postponed indefinitely the new Starliner spacecraft's unmanned test flight to the ISS.
The company was unable to quickly resolve problems with valves in the fuel system of the ship, according to the aerospace company.
In 2010, Boeing began development of its CST-100 Starliner manned spacecraft with funding from the NASA Commercial Crew Program.
In 2019, the spacecraft made its first test flight without a crew, but then it could not enter the calculated orbit and get to the ISS due to an error in the time reference system, which led to excessive fuel consumption.
As a result, Starliner returned to Earth after several maneuvers.
After a number of improvements to the ship, Boeing announced that it is ready to conduct the second unmanned flight OFT-2 (Boeing Orbital Flight Test-2), which was scheduled for July 30, 2021.
However, at first, the launch was postponed due to problems on the ISS with the Nauka module.
Then the launch was postponed several more times due to problems with valves in the spacecraft fuel system: 13 out of 64 valves in the service module were closed, although they should be open before launch.
The ship's propulsion system includes 24 oxidizer supply valves, 24 fuel valves, and 16 helium valves.
All 13 faulty valves are oxidizer valves and are installed on the engines required for the Starliner to enter orbit and further maneuver.
Despite the fact that the company eventually managed to open 9 of the 13 valves, on August 13, 2021, NASA and Boeing decided to postpone the launch of Starliner to the ISS indefinitely.
The ship will be removed from the Atlas V launch vehicle and relocated to the company's Florida plant for valve work and general ship inspection.
According to the preliminary version, the problem is damage to the Teflon valve seals.
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Better to delay and get it right, then to launch and have a major accident that damages confidence in the ship. But it also seems like all the start-up companies are all cleaning Boeing's clock. They are a major employer in my area, so I hope they get it solved.
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That is true. Better delay than fail.
Also, I recently read that Blue Origin workers have been poached by SpaceX.
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