Boeing Starliner’s Latest Mission Simulation Paves the Way for NASA Astronauts

The CST-100 Starliner crew ship from Boeing comes closer to the International Space Station on May 20, 2022, as part of the Orbital Flight Test-2 mission before performing an automatic docking at the forward port of the Harmony module. The photo was taken when the oversea laboratory was 268 miles above the South Pacific. Credit goes to NASA.

With the successful completion of a crew exercise simulation by NASA astronauts, Boeing's Starliner spacecraft paves the path towards its inaugural manned flight to the International Space Station.

The integrated crew exercise simulation was successfully conducted by NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, bringing Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft one step closer to its initial astronaut mission to the International Space Station.

Scheduled for no earlier than mid-April 2024, the Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) by NASA will transport Wilmore and Williams to the space laboratory for roughly two weeks. They will assess Starliner and its systems before landing back on Earth in the Western United States. The launch will occur from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, with the help of an Atlas V rocket from the United Launch Alliance (ULA).

As part of the integrated crew exercise simulation for NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT), NASA astronauts Butch "Barry" Wilmore and Suni Williams were seen coming out of the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 31, 2024. Credit to NASA/Isaac Watson for the photo.

Another milestone towards the CFT launch was marked on Wednesday with the completion of the simulation at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The integrated exercise brought together the flight crew, NASA, Boeing, and ULA for a rehearsal of prelaunch operations, initially starting around four hours before the scheduled liftoff. The rehearsal began with Williams and Wilmore going over their suit-up procedures inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters located in the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout building of NASA Kennedy.

Following that process, they took an elevator to the ground floor, exiting through the identical double doors they would use on the launch day, where their crew transportation vehicle awaited them. Then, the crew, along with the support teams, convoyed towards the launch pad. Wilmore and Williams supported operations from the white room at the end of the crew access arm of the launch tower, which will offer access to the spacecraft. The rehearsal concluded with the crew returning to NASA Kennedy to provide support from Boeing's Mission Control Center.

In the forthcoming weeks, teams will engage in additional simulations, focusing on individual phases of the mission. Future milestones include certification of the CFT, fueling Starliner with propellants, and setting up the spacecraft on the Atlas V rocket before heading out to the launch pad in readiness for liftoff.

Starliner successfully completed two uncrewed flight tests: Orbital Flight Test-1, which provided additional flight data in December 2019, and Orbital Flight Test-2, which launched from Cape Canaveral and concluded its mission to the space station in May 2022. These two uncrewed journeys allowed successful tests of the spacecraft's end-to-end capabilities.