CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. Boeing’s first astronaut flight faced another setback as last-minute computer trouble forced the cancellation of Saturday’s launch attempt.
Two NASA astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, were strapped into the company’s Starliner capsule when the countdown was halted automatically by the computer system at 3 minutes and 50 seconds before liftoff. The swift decision left no time to address the issue, resulting in the launch being called off.
Technicians quickly responded to help Wilmore and Williams exit the capsule atop the fully fueled Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Within an hour of the abort, the hatch was reopened.
Tory Bruno, CEO of United Launch Alliance, stated that the team cannot troubleshoot the problem until the rocket is drained of all its fuel. He explained that one of the three redundant computers, located near the rocket at the pad, was sluggish. All three computers must function properly for the launch to proceed.
Depending on the extent of the necessary fixes, the next launch attempt could be as early as Wednesday. If it does not occur within the coming week, the launch would be delayed until mid-June to move the rocket off the pad and replace its batteries.
“This is the business that we’re in,” said Boeing’s Mark Nappi. “Everything’s got to work perfectly.”
This marks the second launch attempt after the first try on May 6 was delayed for leak checks and rocket repairs. NASA is seeking a backup to SpaceX, which has been flying astronauts since 2020. Boeing was initially scheduled to launch its first crew around the same time as SpaceX, but a series of issues, including severe software problems during its first unmanned test flight in 2019, delayed progress.
A redo in 2022 performed better, but further delays were caused by parachute issues and a small helium leak in the capsule’s propulsion system. Additional valve trouble emerged just two hours before Saturday’s planned liftoff, but the team managed to use a backup circuit to get the ground-equipment valves working to top off the fuel for the rocket’s upper stage. Despite these efforts, the computer system known as the ground launch sequencer ultimately ended the launch attempt.
“Of course, this is emotionally disappointing,” NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, the backup pilot, said from neighboring Kennedy Space Center shortly after the countdown was halted. He acknowledged that delays are part of spaceflight, adding, “We’re going to have a great launch in our future.”
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
