NASA and Boeing are working to perform final analysis of recent test data from fixes identified during the CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle  certification process, and the agency and company are on track to complete overall system certification ahead of Starliner’s first crewed flight planned for no earlier than April 2024.

The Crew Flight Test will carry NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to ISS for a 7-14 day stay, after which Starliner will detach from the orbiting laboratory in order to return to Earth in New Mexico at the White Sands Space Harbor, near the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range.

Updates To Parachutes and Risky Tape Used Inside Starliner

Recent modifications to Starliner’s parachute system were validated in a drop-test conducted at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground on January 9, 2024.

Boeing has also addressed concerns about the flammability of P-213 glass cloth tape that is wrapped around wiring harnesses throughout the vehicle inside the Starliner capsule and removed about 4,300 feet of the material in order to reduce a fire hazard inside the capsule.

NASA also stated that it has worked to “clarify the properties and safe usage guidance relative to P213 tape in the NASA Materials Usage Agreements database to prevent a similar misapplication from occurring across industry in the future.

Other Tests Underway

According to NASA, “major integrated flight operations exercises are underway. Mission support teams recently completed a two-day undock to landing mission dress rehearsal with recovery personnel on the ground at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Teams simulated Crew Flight Test procedures and spacecraft sequences starting with pre-undock powerup and continuing through undock, entry, landing, and crew recovery. The exercise provided an additional training opportunity for NASA and Boeing to practice Starliner’s return to Earth in a high-fidelity environment before the flight.”

Remaining Work To Complete Before Starliner Launch

Boeing is planning to complete Starliner’s assembly by the end of January, or about one week away. Following the completion of that work, United Launch Alliance and Boeing can work to integrate the completed vehicle to its ride in space, an Atlas V N22.

NASA released a list of activities remaining to be completed successfully prior to the Crewed Flight Test of Starliner on January 24, 2024:

• work to complete overall Crew Flight Test certification (6-8 weeks)
• put the finishing touches on the Starliner spacecraft, which is already joined to its service module;
• run simulations of operational conditions to rehearse every phase of the mission with the crew, flight controllers, and ground operations teams;
• fuel the spacecraft with propellants for its onboard thrusters for in-space maneuvering;
• stack the ULA Atlas V rocket and Starliner spacecraft before rolling them to the pad at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida;
• and work through detailed systems reviews, culminating with a flight readiness review in the days before launch to verify the system and teams are ready.

NASA: NASA, Boeing Move into Next Phases of Flight Test Prep