Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft made its first successful test flight in May, following the failed mission in December 2019. After a successful unmanned flight, Boeing is preparing for the first crewed test. NASA has announced the first astronauts to fly with the Boeing Starliner.
Starliner’s first astronauts have been announced!
According to NASA, Barry “Butch” Wilmore will lead the Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission. It is stated that Wilmore, a former Space Shuttle pilot, also visited the International Space Station (ISS) twice.
The other astronaut was announced as Suni Williams, who had been in space twice before. Williams became the first person to run a marathon in space, running for more than four hours on the station’s treadmill in 2007. NASA astronaut and three-time spacer Mike Fincke will train as a reserve pilot.
CFT mission history from NASA and Boeing’s uncrewed test mission in May will be determined after completing the evaluations of the flight data obtained. The space agency plans to announce a schedule for CFT towards the end of next month.
Boeing’s first space passengers will be launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Space travelers will follow the flight route Starliner used on its mission last month, before docking at the ISS for a two-week stay.
NASA stated that both the Starliner and Atlas V performed well during all phases of the test flight in May. If Starliner successfully completes the crewed flight test, it will be able to perform continuous flights to the ISS, just like SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.
SpaceX successfully passed the first manned tests in 2020. Crew Dragon has made 5 crewed flights to the ISS since then. The next flight is scheduled for October 2022. So what do you think about Boeing’s first crewed test? You can share your views with us in the comments section.
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