The first manned flight of the American Starliner spacecraft to the ISS has again been postponed indefinitely due to imperfections. The check showed that the parachute lines could break during the descent, and during the flight the wiring could catch fire, informed Arstechnica edition.
Starliner was scheduled to launch on an Atlas V rocket on July 21, aboard astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore who were to travel to the ISS. However, in a meeting with reporters, representatives from NASA and Boeing, the shipbuilder, pointed to two serious design issues that would delay the launch. “Safety is always our number one priority, and that’s the reason for this decision,” Boeing Vice President Mark Nappi said.
The first identified problem was related to the quality of the so-called softlinks, with the help of which the parachute lines are attached to the ship. During a normal descent, the ship lands on three parachutes. However, if a dome does not open, these elements can be subjected to an excessive load beyond the design, and they can break, the test showed.
The second issue is related to the P-213 fiberglass tape that covers the ship’s internal electrical wiring. Recent tests have shown that under certain circumstances during flight, this tape can catch fire. According to Nappi, engineers intend to replace the tape in particularly dangerous wiring areas. “You could say we are disappointed because it will force a postponement. But the team is proud that we made the right choice,” he said.
How quickly the improvements will come and when will the launch be, the company struggled to answer, assuming it could be this year.
The Starliner flight should confirm the ability of NASA’s second contractor besides SpaceX to deliver astronauts to the ISS.
Manned spacecraft tests have been delayed for years after an unmanned Starliner launched in 2019 failed to reach the height of the ISS. After making more than 60 improvements to the ship’s design, Boeing repeated the test in May 2022, this time successfully, making the first flight with astronauts on board possible.
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