On Monday at the Farnborough International Airshow in the U.K., Wisk, in an expansion of its partnership with vertiport developer Skyports, announced an electric air taxi network that it hinted could be ready in time for the marquee event.

Wisk and Skyports in 2022 gave an early look at their vision for an eVTOL air taxi network, complete with infrastructure for vertical takeoff and landing, or vertiports. They will function much like heliports with electric aircraft chargers to juice up Wisk’s air taxi.

The partners now are working with the Council of Mayors of Australia’s South East Queensland (SEQ) region, with which Wisk has collaborated since 2022, to devise a network for the company’s Generation 6 model.

A prototype of the flagship design has a range of 90 sm (78 nm) with reserves and charge time of 15 minutes. Like designs from competitors Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation, the Gen 6 features tilting propellers that aid in both vertical and forward flight. Wisk, though, is one of a handful of firms in the industry looking to fly autonomously at launch. It projects a commercial rollout will happen by the end of the decade.

Wisk and Skyports will pick out hubs for the air taxi across the SEQ region, home to an estimated 4 million and growing. The partners said they will study regional travel patterns, conduct feasibility studies, and speak with local communities about what to expect from the service.

They also noted that the region is already preparing for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic games, saying they expect to plan out air taxi infrastructure in time for the big event.

“We’re excited to see this evolving industry bring high-value local jobs to SEQ and support improved services like medical and tourism,” said Scott Smith, CEO of the SEQ Council of Mayors. “To secure our place as a global destination, we must be at the forefront of adopting emerging technologies.”

Wisk is developing a similar network in Japan in partnership with flag carrier Japan Airlines.

It likewise has plans for the U.S. in the Greater Houston region of Texas and is working toward bringing the Gen 6 to Long Beach, California. Officials in Los Angeles are preparing for the introduction of air taxis ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, though it is unclear if Wisk will meet that deadline.

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Over 75,000 visitors were expected over the course of the five-day event in the small British town southeast of London. With Royal Air Force flyovers, and more than 1,200 exhibitors, it’s sure to be a busy week.

Over the next five days, all the events taking place will be covered in daily roundup articles, so be sure to check back each evening. In this article, we take a look at all the events occurring on the first day of the show, as well as a small press conference with executives at Boeing. 

• READ MORE: Boom Unveils Supersonic Overture Flight Deck

Boeing’s Pre-Airshow Press Conference 

At a press conference in London on the day before the show began, Boeing Commercial Aircraft CEO Stephanie Pope shared key details on the company. In response to questions regarding the impact on Boeing’s production, Pope claimed that Boeing had managed to increase production on its 737s and 787s. 

Pope, who recently took the helm of Boeing commercial aircraft due to the resignation of its former leader, claimed that she had key priorities to address when taking leadership. These included culture at the company, production, and quality. 

Korean Air Renews Long-Haul Fleet 

Korean Air announced at a press conference that they were ordering additional long-haul aircraft to its fleet.

The order consisted of 20 Boeing 777-9s, and 20 Boeing 787-10s, with a further 10 Boeing 787s being optional. Korean Air CEO Walter Cho claimed that these additional aircraft tied in nicely with the Airbus A350-1000s ordered earlier this year.

When questioned on when the aircraft would be delivered, Cho said Korean Air was looking at 2028 as the first delivery slot.

Japan Airlines Orders More Boeing 787s

Japan Airlines has announced that it will procure an additional 10 Boeing 787-9s, with the first set to arrive in 2028 going through to 2031.

This is a finalization of the order announced in March of this year. Once the order is finalized, it will bring JAL’s order total to 10 Boeing 787s and 21 Boeing 737 Max.

Drukair Plans to Add 5 Airbus Jets

In one of the first A321XLR orders of the airshow, Bhutan flag carrier Drukair announced a revolutionary short-haul order for the airline. The full breakdown consists of three Airbus A320neos and two Airbus A321XLRs. 

The airline’s current Airbus fleet consists of four Airbus A320 family aircraft: three Airbus A319s and an A320ceo. The new aircraft will be revolutionary for the small Bhutani carrier, allowing it to reach destinations farther away, such as the Middle East or northeastern Asia.

• READ MORE: Embraer Inks A-29 Super Tucano Deal

“[We’re] thrilled to embark on this new chapter in Drukair’s history, which dovetails perfectly with the development of the Gelephu Mindfulness City and work to expand the Gelephu Airport [VQGP],” Drukair CEO Tandi Wangchuk said. “Our investment in these state-of-the-art aircraft underscores our dedication to supporting Bhutan’s vision of holistic and mindful development.”

Qatar Airways Touts Upgraded Qsuite Product

Qatar Airways revealed its “QSuite next-gen” product, an upgrade to its current business-class product featured on its Boeing 777s and Airbus A350s. The new features include moveable 4K OLED Panasonic Astrova IFE screens, the first to be featured on board an airline’s cabin.

The seats in the cabin are also wider now, and the ability to socialize in so-called “Quad suites” (four seats grouped together) still remains at the heart of its product. The new seats will be featured on Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777-9s, which are on order and set to first arrive in 2025. 

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on AirlineGeeks.com.

The post Farnborough Airshow Kicks Off With a Handful of Orders appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

The report noted that long-term demand for qualified aviation personnel remained strong with the need for some 674,000 pilots, 716,000 maintenance technicians, and 980,000 cabin crewmembers by 2043 to meet growing demands.

“Driven by aviation traffic trending above pre-pandemic levels, personnel attrition and commercial fleet growth, the demand for aviation personnel continues to rise,” said Chris Broom, vice president of commercial training solutions for Boeing Global Services. “We are focused on being a reliable and innovative partner in the lifecycle of aviation training. Our offerings are rooted in competency-based training and assessment programs to help ensure high quality aviation training starting in flight schools and in commercial operations while helping enhance aviation safety through immersive and virtual training solutions.”

Boeing also anticipated a 3 percent increase in airplane deliveries over the next 20 years, projecting a need for 44,000 new commercial aircraft. According to the company, single-aisle airplanes will make up 71 percent of the fleet with new deliveries primarily for short- to medium-haul routes.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on AVweb.

The post Boeing Projects Need for 2.4 Million New Aviation Professionals appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

For the public, those were the first words heard from NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams—the crew of the space agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT)—since they arrived at the orbital laboratory more than one month ago for an intended eight-day stay.

The Earth-to-orbit call between crew and NASA command was live streamed on the agency’s website. The event answered appeals from members of the media, made during a previous press conference, to see the astronauts on camera as concerns with Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner—which brought them to the ISS—continue to linger.

The spacecraft is contending with two key problems: helium leaks and deactivated or underperforming thrusters. The issues are concentrated within the spacecraft’s service module, which aids in maneuvers such as docking and undocking with the ISS.

NASA and Boeing have indicated that Starliner has more than enough helium to make it home but are continuing to assess the root cause of the leaks. During a hot fire test after docking, four out of the five affected thrusters performed as expected. The fifth was deactivated for the remainder of the mission.

Williams and Wilmore recounted their trip to the space station and the moment they realized that Starliner’s thrusters were not firing at full power. They also sang the spacecraft’s praises, with Wilmore even saying he was tempted to award his first perfect rating for its handling performance.

Separately, NASA and Boeing representatives held a press conference to provide the latest on ongoing ground thruster testing at White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. Officials again did not provide a firm return date for Wilmore and Williams. But Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew program, estimated that testing could wrap up by the end of the month, after which point teams will iron out a timeline.

Engineers hope to conduct as many evaluations as possible while the semireusable spacecraft, designed to survive 10 missions, is in orbit. Starliner’s service module, the expendable component of the spacecraft, will be jettisoned and lost as it reenters Earth’s atmosphere.

Astronauts Phone Home

Williams and Wilmore on Wednesday made their long-awaited first appearance on camera since arriving at the ISS on June 6, recounting the CFT’s progress so far.

“Launch was spectacular,” Wilmore said, adding that the spacecraft performed “unbelievably well” during operational capability checks.

However, on the second day of their journey to the ISS, the astronauts could tell something was amiss. As Starliner approached the orbital lab, a total of five reaction control system (RCS) thrusters on its service module either turned off or did not fire at intended strength. Williams and Wilmore commandeered the capsule manually for about one hour as teams on the ground assessed the issue.

“From that point on, you could tell that the thrust was degraded,” Wilmore said. “But it was still impressive.”

Even with less-than-optimal performance, the thrusters completed what Wilmore described as a perfect maneuver as they navigated the final 10 meters to dock Starliner with the space station.

According to Williams, the astronauts talk with mission crews once per week to share and analyze the data they’ve collected. She highlighted the capsule’s ability to serve as a “safe haven” in the event of an ISS evacuation—a role it fulfilled last month after a Russian satellite broke up in orbit.

“We are having a great time here on the ISS,” said Williams. “I’m not complaining, Butch isn’t complaining, that we’re here for a couple extra weeks.”

One question NASA and Boeing have received is whether Starliner could bring Williams and Wilmore home right now. Officials insist it could, but only in an emergency situation that would require the ISS to be evacuated. The astronauts were asked about their confidence level in that scenario.

“I feel confident that, if we had to—if there was a problem with the International Space Station—we could get in the spacecraft and undock, talk with our team, and figure out the best way to come home,” said Williams.

She later added, “I have a real good feeling in my heart that the spacecraft will bring us home no problem.”

Wilmore said he and his crewmate “trust the tests we are doing are the right ones we need to do to get us the right answers, to give us the data we need to come back,” adding that they are “absolutely ready” for a return based on current engineering data.

NASA could send a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule—which has completed all eight ISS Commercial Crew rotation missions to date—to retrieve the astronauts should Starliner’s issues persist. On Wednesday, Stich said the space agency has not yet opened those discussions with SpaceX, though he did not rule out the possibility.

The astronauts also described their view of Hurricane Beryl from space, saying that their families—who live in Texas and were in the storm’s path—are doing well. Wilmore said he is “90 percent sure” he could see the storm forming off the West coast of Africa days before it was named.

The 20-minute call concluded with some zero-gravity backflips by Williams and a big, smiling thumbs-up from Wilmore.

NASA, Boeing Share More Info

Stich and Mark Nappi, vice president and general manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew program, addressed the media following the astronauts’ remarks.

According to Stich, Starliner will need to undock before mid-August, when SpaceX’s Crew-8 team swaps with the incoming Crew-9. Williams and Wilmore will need to return a few days before the Crew-9 launch window opens. Starliner remains a “go” for return in an emergency scenario, officials said. But they prefer to wait until ground testing is complete before attempting a by-the-books return,

Stich estimated that hot fire testing at White Sands could “optimistically” wrap up by the end of July, though it could be extended. Teams are working toward a nominal return flight readiness review, standard for crew rotation missions, that would give the green light to finish the mission as planned. 

Should more time be needed, NASA is in the process of approving a 45-day extension of the CFT, which is contingent on the health of Starliner’s batteries. According to Stich, those systems have shown no sign of wear and tear.

The goal of the test campaign is to recreate the firing pattern of one of Starliner’s faulty thrusters using an identical thruster—designed for a future mission—on the ground. Hot fire testing began on July 3, but Stich said crews have so far been unable to achieve the temperatures experienced by the thruster in orbit. Engineers believe the unusual firing pattern could be due to excess heat.

Teams will then attempt to predict how the thrusters might behave as Starliner undocks and flies home. Based on their learnings, they could modify the spacecraft’s flight path, deactivate certain thrusters, or fire them at different rates. Williams and Wilmore are capable of piloting Starliner manually if issues arise.

At the same time, Stich said White Sands personnel are evaluating the service module for Starliner’s inaugural crew rotation mission, Starliner-1, scheduled for February. The current service module has contended with a series of helium leaks, for which crews are attempting to uncover the root cause. Starliner-1’s service module won’t be redesigned, but Nappi said future models could incorporate changes based on the testing at White Sands.

The Outlook

Extended ISS stays are not necessarily uncommon, and the space station is designed to accommodate crew for months at a time if needed.

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, for example, set a U.S. spaceflight record when his planned six-month mission was nearly doubled to 371 consecutive days aboard the orbital laboratory. Unlike Starliner, the Russian Soyuz capsule that ferried Rubio to the ISS was quickly ruled out as an emergency return vehicle, lending credence to the idea that Boeing’s issues are less severe.

However, NASA and Boeing face the added pressure of certification after close to a decade of delays to the Starliner program. In a prior press conference, Stich acknowledged that NASA and Boeing “understand it’s going to take a little bit longer” to certify Starliner than originally planned.

On Wednesday, the Commercial Crew manager said teams will decide between Starliner-1 or SpaceX Dragon’s Crew-10—which are booked for the same February launch window—once the CFT ends and postflight analysis is complete. The longer that takes, he said, the more likely it is that SpaceX will take over the mission.

Nappi agreed with that assessment, citing the need to understand and fix Starliner’s helium leaks as the biggest obstacle to certification.

NASA and Boeing said Wilmore and Williams will make one more Earth-to-orbit call before they depart the ISS, with more details to come.

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According to the DOJ, Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge after the government determined the aerospace manufacturer had violated an agreement that protected it from prosecution.

Last week federal prosecutors gave Boeing a choice between entering a guilty plea and paying a fine or facing trial on the felony charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S.

• READ MORE: DOJ Presents Boeing With Plea Deal in 737 Max Crash Cases

Federal prosecutors allege that Boeing misled regulators about the flight control system known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), which was ostensibly designed as a flight stabilization feature on the 737. 

MCAS was implicated in the crash of Lion Air Flight 610 in Indonesia in October 2018 and the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in March 2019. In both events the aircraft entered unrecoverable dives shortly after takeoff.

The DOJ accused Boeing of deceiving the FAA to push through certification of the 737 Max despite concerns about the software connected to the flight controls and the additional training required for pilots who flew the airplane.

“We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department,” Boeing told FLYING, adding, “subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms.”

The plea deal must be approved by a federal judge before it takes effect. It calls for Boeing to pay an additional fine of $243.6 million, which is the same amount the company paid in 2021 in the original settlement that the DOJ says the company breached, as it did not improve its safety and quality control processes.

• READ MORE: Boeing Crash Victim Families Seek $24.8B Fine From Company

The company maintained this had been achieved, then in January a Boeing 737 flown by Alaska Airlines lost a door plug midflight. The preliminary investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) revealed the door plug had been installed without four bolts designed to keep it in place.

As previously reported by FLYING, since the incident Boeing maintains that it has taken steps to improve quality control and safety culture at its manufacturing facilities, and the company is working with the FAA to improve communication and oversight.

According to Mark Lindquist, an aviation and personal injury attorney who represented several victim families in the two 737 Max 8 crashes as well as multiple passengers in the Alaska door plug blowout, Boeing had no choice but to accept the plea deal.

• READ MORE: FAA Head Vows Increase in Boeing Oversight

“Boeing’s guilty plea was inevitable,” Lindquist said. “Boeing can stall and postpone accountability, but justice has a way of catching up to defendants. While many of us would have preferred a more vigorous prosecution, a guilty plea to a felony is a serious step up in accountability from the initial deferred prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice.”

Lindquist noted that the families of the victims will be asking the judge not to accept the plea deal in its current form. One of the criticisms put forth by members of the victims’ families during congressional testimony and national media interviews is that Boeing has been fined before, yet the problems still persist.

“More than five years after 346 people died in two preventable crashes, it’s high time for Boeing to accept full responsibility, resolve pending cases, reform its culture, and rebuild,” said Lindquist. “Justice and accountability are important, but it’s also important to victim families—and the nation—that Boeing no longer sacrifices safety for profits. Next steps for the company should include accepting full responsibility in the civil cases filed by victim families. Many of us would like to see Boeing refocus on quality and return to its former greatness…

“A trial would have aired out all of Boeing’s negligence, misconduct, and dirty laundry. Additionally, the evidence was overwhelming. Therefore, Boeing had little choice but to plead guilty.”

The latest DOJ plea deal also requires Boeing to invest at least $455 million into its safety and compliance programs.

FLYING reached out to the DOJ but requests for comment were not returned by press time.

This is a developing story.

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During a media briefing on Friday, NASA and Boeing representatives said the astronauts’ return to Earth will come after ground testing at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico is complete. Teams are working to re-create some of the issues experienced by the reusable spacecraft during its inaugural crewed flight to the orbital laboratory.

According to Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew program, Starliner was originally deemed safe for a stay as long as 45 days on the ISS. Crews are in the process of extending its battery life, which Stich said will keep the risk level manageable for another 45 days, at least.

However, he conceded that NASA and Boeing “understand it’s going to take a little bit longer” to certify Starliner than previously planned. The spacecraft is scheduled to fly its first service mission, Starliner-1, early next year. Officials said SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which has completed all eight commercial crew rotation missions to the ISS to date, could take that slot.

“We’re not in any rush to come home,” Stich said Friday. “The risk for the next 45 days is essentially the same as for the first 45 days.”

Added Ken Bowersox, associate administrator of NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate: “We have the luxury of time.”

Stich, Bowersox, and Mark Nappi, the manager of Boeing’s commercial crew program,  reiterated that “engineering data suggests” Starliner is safe to return Wilmore and Williams to Earth in the event of an emergency.

Officials also reported that the spacecraft is in “good shape” despite two lingering issues—a set of helium leaks and faulty thrusters.

A total of five helium leaks have sprung up on Starliner’s service module, which makes tiny maneuvers to the spacecraft to assist in docking and keep it in orbit. After testing the helium manifolds earlier this month, NASA found that leak rates had declined. Stich on Friday said those rates have not changed.

The other issue involves the service module’s thrusters, some of which did not fire at full strength en route to the ISS. These were also assessed earlier this month, and Stich said performance on all thrusters is between 80 and 100 percent.

It appears the thrusters are the main factor necessitating a longer mission for Starliner. As soon as Tuesday, engineers will begin testing an identical component at White Sands to re-create the firing pattern of one of the in-orbit thrusters. Officials said the campaign is expected to last several weeks and could be extended.

According to Nappi, teams want to keep Starliner in space for the evaluations because they could inform additional in-orbit tests or a modification of the spacecraft’s undocking procedure. He said crews do not yet understand the issue well enough to fix them permanently and that it would be “irresponsible” not to use additional time to conduct testing. Starliner’s crew module is reusable for up to 10 missions, but the service module will be jettisoned during the CFT.

Nappi said he has been in contact with Wilmore and Williams and that they remain in good spirits, describing Starliner as “pristine and precise.” The astronauts are able to communicate with their families daily and according to officials are not “stranded.”

On Wednesday, Starliner got another real-life test when an in-orbit satellite breakup created a debris field that hurtled toward the ISS. Wilmore and Williams tested the spacecraft’s ability to act as a “safe haven” in the case of a contingency on the space station, getting inside, powering it up, and sealing the hatch. They remained inside for an hour and according to officials were prepared to initiate an undocking if necessary.

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The manufacturer on Tuesday announced the acquisition of Verocel, a software verification and validation (V&V) company focused on the certification of aerospace software—with a particular focus on autonomous designs. Unlike competitors such as Archer Aviation or Joby Aviation, which plan to fly autonomous in the future, Wisk intends for its Gen 6 to fly itself at launch.

Verocel’s flagship offering, VeroTrace, assists manufacturers with software certification definitions, tracking, and submissions to the FAA. Wisk intends to use it to support Gen 6 certification, but it said the software may also be used in “future software development projects for Boeing.” In addition, more than 50 Verocel engineers based in Massachusetts and Poland will join Wisk.

“High-integrity software development is critical for our mission to certify an autonomous, electric aircraft, with V&V being a significant portion of the total software certification effort,” said Brian Yutko, CEO of Wisk. “Verocel’s specialized and talented team will bring with them deep experience and rigor, helping to accelerate our autonomous certification project that is already well underway.”

According to Verocel, team members have extensive knowledge of Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification, or DO-178C—a document used by regulators including the FAA, European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), and Transport Canada to approve commercial aerospace software.

The company is part of several aerospace industry standards committees including a special committee within the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA), the EUROCAE Working Group, and the FAA’s Overarching Properties Working Group. Over the course of 25 years and more than 160 projects, it has performed work for Boeing and GE Aerospace, among others.

“Not only is this a chance to directly apply our expertise to the certification of a groundbreaking technology, but this is also an incredible opportunity for Verocel talent to excel within Wisk and the broader Boeing ecosystem long term,” said Jim Chelini, president of Verocel.

Beyond V&V, Verocel also develops the safety computers used in the FAA’s Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), which is intended to improve the accuracy and availability of global positioning systems (GPS). WAAS allows an aircraft to rely on GPS for all phases of flight, including vertical landings.

Wisk is staring down a more rigorous certification process than its competitors, and the acquisition of Verocel is intended to get the ball rolling faster. The manufacturer aims to introduce the Gen 6 before the end of the decade in markets such as Los Angeles and the Greater Houston Area, where it is developing a vertiport hub at Sugar Land Regional Airport (KSGR).

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Today’s Top Pick is a 1941 Boeing​/​Stearman A75N1.

When people think of biplanes, World War I fighters and other small, fragile, lightweight, and underpowered machines often come to mind. The Boeing Stearman, however, is in a different category.

It is rugged, surprisingly large and has enough power to make flying an adventure and a joy. There is nothing quite like flying a Stearman low over a Northeastern forest during autumn, when the changing foliage is at its best, or touching down gracefully on a grass strip after a day of visiting distant airports.

While the Stearman is a charismatic antique that commands attention at just about any airport, it is not especially rare, so there are many opportunities to own one in today’s market. And while few airplanes are truly inexpensive, the Stearman is among the more affordable flying collectibles.

They still serve as great trainers as well, especially for those aspiring to fly high-performance warbirds. Just like the Army Air Corps trainees of the 1940s, civilian pilots who master a Stearman today can be ready to take the next training step toward fast piston fighters like the P-51 Mustang.  

This 1941 Stearman has 5,816 hours on the airframe and 629 on its Continental W670 radial engine since overhaul. The aircraft is covered with Ceconite and was last painted in 1987. The VFR panel includes a 720-channel comm radio, Isocom intercom and traditional analog instruments.

Pilots who wish to sample what military flight cadets experienced during World War II, or simply seek the pleasure of flying a handsome vintage biplane, should consider this 1941 Boeing/Stearman, which is available for $71,500 on AircraftForSale.

If you’re interested in financing, you can do so with FLYING Finance. Use their airplane loan calculator to calculate your estimated monthly payments. Or, to speak with an aviation finance specialist, visit flyingfinance.com.

• FLYING Magazine: Restoration Nation: The Stearman Next Door
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• FLYING Magazine: Stearman Takes Chicago-Area Vets on a Nostalgic Flight
• The Aviation Consumer: Buying the Old Ones: Homework Mandatory
• The Aviation Consumer: Antiques and Classics: Owning and Operating
• AVweb: Pilot Completes U.K.-Australia Stearman Flight

The post This 1941 Boeing/Stearman A75N1 Is an ‘AircraftForSale’ With Military History appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Wilmore and Williams began their sojourn to the ISS on June 5 with plans for an eight-day stay but will now spend a minimum of three weeks aboard the orbital laboratory.

Partners NASA and Boeing—under contract for six Starliner Commercial Crew missions following the completion of the CFT and the vehicle’s certification—had previously targeted a return date of Saturday, doubling the length of the astronauts’ mission. On Tuesday, however, they decided to further delay a return to allow teams to collect data from Starliner’s service module.

The service module, which makes small maneuvers to align the capsule such as when orbiting or docking, is an expendable component that is jettisoned before the spacecraft reenters the atmosphere. NASA and Boeing hope to study it further in order to assess issues that have arisen during the mission. Their findings will inform any modifications required before the capsule can be certified to enter NASA’s rotation.

NASA Commercial Crew program manager Steve Stich, ISS program manager Dana Wiegel, Johnson Space Center flight director Mike Lammers, and Boeing Commercial Crew program manager and vice president Mark Nappi addressed those problems Tuesday.

Starliner is contending with three main issues. The most significant is a series of helium leaks traced to the seals between the service module’s thrusters and manifold, of which crews have identified five. The first leak was discovered during prelaunch preparations, two were uncovered on the way to the ISS, and two more were identified after docking.

Another complication, which teams on Tuesday theorized may be connected to the helium leaks, involves the service module’s aft reaction control system (RCS) thrusters. Five of these engines failed to fire during the final phase of the spacecraft’s rendezvous with the ISS. Each phase of the remainder of the CFT requires a different number and arrangement of RCS thrusters.

The last problem stems from a faulty oxidizer isolation valve, which has been closed for the remainder of the mission. All other valves are functioning normally, NASA said.

According to Wiegel, the ISS can hold Wilmore and Williams indefinitely as NASA and Boeing prepare Starliner for undocking. Nappi said 77 of 87 CFT flight test objectives have already been completed, with the remaining few taking place during the trip back to Earth. He described the astronauts’ extended stay as an “opportunity” and a “privilege” to study Starliner further on orbit, which is considered an ideal test environment.

Over the past week and a half, Starliner teams have been busy gathering flight data on thruster firing, docking, and other maneuvers, as well as performing testing and analysis on the ground.

During a hot fire test over the weekend, one of the five RCS thrusters displayed what Stich described as “a strange signature where we’re getting almost no thrust out of that [engine].” Crews have opted to power down the thruster for the remainder of the mission. Three other thrusters functioned as expected.

On Starliner’s first visit to the ISS in 2022, a similar issue occurred where two RCS thrusters failed. Stich theorized that heat may be causing propellant in the engines’ chambers to vaporize.

The hot fire test also reflected a promising outlook for the helium manifold problem: “I would say every single manifold that we looked at [following testing], we saw the leak rates going down,” said Stich.

Starliner requires about seven hours’ worth of helium to undock from the ISS, perform a deorbit burn, and touch down on Earth, representing the final steps of the CFT. On Tuesday, teams estimated that the spacecraft will have at least 70 hours of margin.

According to Stich, three helium leaks, described as larger than the rest, tend to reach their highest rate when the service module’s RCS thrusters are firing, leading he and NASA to believe there may be a link between the two problems. As noted earlier, two leaks were identified after Starliner docked to the ISS, which Stich said placed an unexpected amount of demand on the thrusters.

Stich added that the two leaks discovered en route to the orbital laboratory stabilized while Wilmore and Williams took their designated sleep, suggesting there could be some correlation between thruster activity and leak rate. He theorized that the seals on the service module’s helium manifolds could be getting worn down due to extreme heat, for example.

NASA and Boeing representatives said Wilmore and Williams remain in good spirits aboard the ISS. The astronauts are using their extended stay to perform additional tests and equipment checkouts, including a demonstration of Starliner’s use as a safe haven in the case of a contingency aboard the space station. Stich likened the scenario to seeking refuge in a storm cellar during a tornado.

Crews throughout the week will continue to conduct evaluations of Starliner on orbit and on the ground, including simulations of the mission’s final phase. If all goes according to plan, Starliner, carrying Wilmore and Williams, will undock from the ISS on June 25 and land at White Sands Space Harbor the following morning at 4:51 a.m. EDT. Additional landing opportunities are available every four days, with the next being June 30.

The CFT is intended to be Starliner’s final test flight before the vehicle is certified by NASA for service missions. On Tuesday, representatives did not dismiss the possibility of a delay in certification to address the spacecraft’s frequent issues. The vehicle’s first operational mission, Starliner-1, is scheduled for 2025.

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On Wednesday morning, the autonomous, semireusable space capsule—intended for 10 service missions to the International Space Station (ISS) under a multibillion contract between the aerospace manufacturer and NASA—finally lifted off with humans for the first time.

The long-delayed mission, called the Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test (CFT), will take NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the orbital laboratory, where they will conduct an array of tests and evaluations of the spacecraft, its systems, and equipment.

The CFT is expected to be Starliner’s final flight test, demonstrating its capabilities with astronauts on board before NASA moves to certify it for Commercial Crew rotation missions to the ISS. The first of these, Starliner-1, could take place as early as next year.

An initial CFT launch attempt on May 6 was scrubbed, and the mission was postponed several times before finally taking flight. But Wilmore and Williams are now well on their way to the space station, where they are expected to dock Thursday at 12:15 p.m. EDT.

We Have Liftoff

Starliner lifted off from the pad at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Wednesday at 10:52 a.m. EDT as teams had planned.

Carrying the capsule into orbit was United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Atlas V rocket, which is making its 100th flight. Atlas V, when stacked together with Starliner, stands over 170 feet tall and generated some 1.6 million pounds of thrust at liftoff.

The liftoff represented the first time humans have hitched a ride on either Starliner or Atlas V. Williams became the first woman to fly on the maiden voyage of a crewed spacecraft.

After achieving Max Q—the moment the rocket faces the greatest amount of pressure as it climbs through the atmosphere—Starliner successfully separated from Atlas V at suborbit, just under 15 minutes into the mission. From this point on, the astronauts will be on their own.

About half an hour into the mission, Starliner executed a successful insertion burn to place it in stable orbit, from which the capsule will embark on an approximately 24-hour journey to the ISS. The spacecraft will dock with the orbital laboratory’s Harmony module Thursday afternoon, and Williams and Wilmore will disembark to join the crew of NASA’s Expedition 71 for a weeklong stay.

Setting the Stage

Throughout the CFT, the astronauts will work to prepare Starliner for certification.

The performance of equipment such as suits and seats was assessed during prelaunch and ascent. As Starliner rendezvous with the space station, the crew will conduct further testing of life support equipment, manual and automated navigation systems, and thruster performance in the scenario of a manual abort. While capable of flying on its own, the capsule can be commanded manually, and crews have failsafes at their disposal at different points in the flight path.

After assessing Starliner’s autonomous docking capabilities and the opening and closing of its hatch, the astronauts will configure the spacecraft for its stay and move emergency equipment into the ISS. Once they are settled, teams will perform checks of displays, cargo systems, and the vehicle itself.

Williams and Wilmore will also try to prove that the capsule could serve as a “safe haven” in the event of depressurization, fire, or collision with debris impacting the orbital laboratory.

On their return trip, the astronauts will briefly test out Starliner’s manual piloting capabilities. As it approaches Earth’s atmosphere, the capsule will slow from its orbital velocity of 17,500 mph and touch down in one of four locations in the Western U.S., using a combination of parachutes and airbags.

A Calculated Risk

If all goes according to plan, Starliner could launch on its first Commercial Crew rotation mission for NASA in the first half of next year. However, the space agency, Boeing, and ULA are taking a calculated risk with the mission.

A helium leak traced to one of the 28 reaction control system thrusters on Starliner’s service module—which helps maneuver the capsule while in orbit—is responsible for a few of the spacecraft’s recent setbacks. NASA describes the leak as small and stable.

But in a scenario Steve Stich, who manages the Commercial Crew program, described as “a pretty diabolical case, where you would lose two helium manifolds in two separate [thrusters]” that are next to one another, Starliner could be unable to perform a deorbit burn. That’s the maneuver that allows it to slow down from orbital speeds as it reenters the atmosphere.

NASA estimated the likelihood of this occurring at 0.77 percent. As a contingency, it and Boeing developed a modified deorbit burn procedure which they say has been tested in a simulator by Williams and Wilmore.

What It Means

There’s a lot riding on the Starliner CFT’s success.

For Boeing, which rakes in billions every quarter, the more important impact may be reputational rather than financial. The company has come under fire in recent months for its internal safety processes, and successfully flying two humans to the ISS and back could help ease the pressure.

For NASA, Starliner may be instrumental in achieving the agency’s goals.

To date, all eight Commercial Crew rotation missions have been flown by SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which like Starliner is a reusable capsule for up to seven passengers. SpaceX signed its own multibillion-dollar contract with the space agency at the same time as Boeing and has since extended it multiple times, without failing to complete a mission.

But NASA wants an alternative to Dragon in the case of a contingency, such as the one that stranded astronaut Frank Rubio on the ISS for nearly a year—and helped him set a U.S. spaceflight record in the process. The space agency made sure to commemorate Rubio’s achievement, but it wants to avoid a similar situation recurring. By keeping two reusable spacecraft in its fleet, it could have one ready to retrieve a crew in case the other fails.

Should Starliner enter NASA’s Commercial Crew rotation, it will alternate six-month missions to the ISS with Dragon.

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