In the future, Nasa will pay both Starliner and SpaceX for transporting astronauts to the International Space Station approximately once every six months.
Boeing’s The first crewed flight of the Starliner space capsule to the International Space Station is expected to take place in July, Boeing and NASA officials announced on Wednesday, according to the AFP news agency.
The CST-100 Starliner flight was previously scheduled for April. However, according to US officials, the flight would take place on July 21 at the earliest, NASA program manager Steve Stich confirmed to reporters.
“The best time for the launch is then in July,” Stich told reporters.
Boeing has been building the Starliner spacecraft designed for manned spaceflight for about nine years.
According to Stich, the Starliner flight was moved forward because it became apparent that it would take more time to plan the flight than originally estimated.
Starliner carrying two NASA astronauts, Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams to the ISS space station, where they are expected to stay for at least eight days.
The journey from Earth to orbit takes only 12 minutes, but it takes astronauts years to prepare for it.
The spacecraft is to be launched into space by an Atlas V rocket built at Cape Caneveral, Florida.
If the mission is successful, the Boeing capsule will be certified and can begin operational flights in the future.
Their date is not yet known.
Boeing had hoped to begin manned flights on the Starliner last year, but the plan ran into several delays.
Finally, in May 2022, Boeing managed to reach the ISS space station for the first time – without a crew.
In the future, NASA will pay for both Starliner and Elon Musk’s To SpaceX for transporting astronauts to the ISS space station approximately once every six months.
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