Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams.
The safety problems plaguing Boeing are now genuinely ‘out of this world’, as they include ‘multiple helium leaks’ on the Starliner rocket that has left astronauts stranded on the International Space Station.
And worse: it has now arisen that both NASA and Boeing managers knew about the problem, but OK’d the launch anyway, believing it ‘too small to pose a threat’.
New York Post reported:
“Officials found a helium leak on the troubled Starliner before its launch June 5, but NASA and Boeing leaders said the rocket was good to go because the issue was supposedly too small to pose a safety threat for the spacecraft, CBS News said. The rocket’s launch date had already been delayed due to another leak.
Then once in orbit, four more helium leaks developed, with one thruster officially deemed unusable. The return trip for astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams has now been delayed until at least July 2.”
The Starliner has 5 helium leaks, but NASA says it’s capable of bringing astronauts back.
This dramatic turn of events compounds the already critical situation with Boeing, after multiple high-profile malfunctions of planes and over 20 whistleblowers alerting about safety and quality issues.
“Wilmore and Williams were supposed to come back home June 13 after a week on the ISS, but their return date remains up in the air as engineers continue to analyze and test the helium leaks and thruster failures on the Starliner, NASA said.
‘We are taking our time and following our standard mission management team process’, Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said in a statement. ‘We are letting the data drive our decision-making relative to managing the small helium system leaks and thruster performance we observed during rendezvous and docking’, he added.”
NASA still trusts Starliner, that would be ‘performing well in orbit while docked to the space station’.
NASA officials insist Wilmore and Williams are still cleared to undock and fly home at any time if a major issue arises – but we all understand that this is not how space missions are supposed to go.
There is widespread concern over Starliner’s ability to safely make the six-hour return trip.
“Boeing has spent about $1.5 billion in cost overruns beyond the initial $4.5 billion contract it secured with NASA, which is hoping to make Starliner its second mode of transportation to the ISS alongside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.”
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