Will the Starliner ever enter service?

When will the Starliner succeed with crewed test? (multiple selections allowed)

  • Before SpaceX Starship enters regular non-crewed service

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Sometime after SpaceX Spaceship enters regular uncrewed service

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • After Starship begins crewed operations

    Votes: 1 4.5%

  • Soon, maybe in June or July of this year (2024)

    Votes: 3 13.6%

  • Not until fall of 2024

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Months and months away, maybe a year or more but they'll get there.

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Never. Boeing and NASA cut losses and drop the effort

    Votes: 10 45.5%

  • Stick it inside a Starship and pretend that counts.

    Votes: 2 9.1%

  • Option 7, but they revive the effort once Elon Musk's major mental malfunctions destroy SpaceX

    Votes: 5 22.7%
  • Total voters
    22

crescent

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crescent
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Eight years behind schedule and counting.

The first crewed test flight was scheduled for May 6 (two weeks ago). That was delayed until May 17, then May 25. Now it is scrubbed indefinitely with NASA admitting that they don't currently have a clear path forward.

Boeing, NASA indefinitely delay crewed Starliner launch

There is still forward work in these areas, and the next possible launch opportunity is still being discussed. NASA will share more details once we have a clearer path forward.
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The Great Zaganza said:
It doesn't matter if a door falls off a space vessel in flight, does it?
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C'mon. This is Boeing. Things fall off before it ever makes it to the pad:

https://x.com/cbs_spacenews/status/1521887273406640138
OFT-2: During the rollover to pad 41, as the Starliner neared the Vehicle Assembly Building, a protective window cover somehow fell off the capsule and tumbled to the road; after a brief stop to determine what had happened, the trip continued
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Scheduled again for June 1.

Starship is also scheduled for that day. Starliner from Florida and Starship from Texas.
 
EHocking said:
Question. Where in space would you never be affected by gravity? Technically, in space you are just in perpetual freefall?
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Practically speaking?

It's true, if you are in orbit around anything, the earth, the sun, the barycenter of galaxy, etc. then you are affected by gravity. But you won't feel it if you are in space.
 
Puppycow said:
Practically speaking?

It's true, if you are in orbit around anything, the earth, the sun, the barycenter of galaxy, etc. then you are affected by gravity. But you won't feel it if you are in space.
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The question was not of feeling but of falling.
If you are “feeling” weightlessness, it is because you are in freefall.
 
Made it to orbit. :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Next big step is to dock with ISS. Eight days at ISS then come back down.

Presumably a whole bunch of tests and monitoring going on the whole time.

A key thing about Starliner is that it give the NASA/ESA and all of the other allied space agencies a second class of human-rated launch vehicle. Which means that if one (either Starliner or Crew Dragon) needs to be grounded for a time to deal with an issue, we still have access to the ISS - without relying upon Russia/Soyuz.

We can be in space to stay, and access ISS or any post-ISS things without needing to deal with Russia. And we can do that even if we have problems - nice to have backups/secondary systems. That'll be a win as far as I'm concerned.

Still gotta get through the rest of the test and get that crew down though. Fingers crossed.
 
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Does a crewed trip to the ISS count as Starliner entering service? Presumably the flight carried some kind of useful payload, and not just deadheading supercargo.

I mean, technically Apollo 11 was a test flight, but I'd count that mission as "entering service" according to the spirit and stated goals of the program.
 
theprestige said:
Does a crewed trip to the ISS count as Starliner entering service? Presumably the flight carried some kind of useful payload, and not just deadheading supercargo.
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Some replacement part for the urine/water recycling system that's urgently required, apparently.
 
From the Independent article: "Docking maneuvers with crew will pose another test for Starliner, followed roughly a week later by the test of returning to Earth."

I think they missed out a word - "safely" returning to the Earth is rather like the old adage of pilots, only takeoffs are optional, landings are mandatory.
 
Darat said:
From the Independent article: "Docking maneuvers with crew will pose another test for Starliner, followed roughly a week later by the test of returning to Earth."

I think they missed out a word - "safely" returning to the Earth is rather like the old adage of pilots, only takeoffs are optional, landings are mandatory.
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Well technically if they successfully dock with ISS, they could return in a Soyuz. That's not the plan, but it could be a change of plans if it were to become necessary for some reason.
 
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