Spaceflight Now reports that The Boeing Company’s “second Starliner crew ferry spacecraft rolled out of its factory early Saturday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for mounting on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket set for liftoff July 30 on a redo of a problem-plagued unpiloted test flight in 2019.” ULA’s “ground crew attached a four-point lifting sling for the overhead crane in the VIF to hoist the Starliner spacecraft atop the Atlas 5 rocket, which was already stacked on a mobile launch platform inside the vertical hangar.” Teams “completed work to attach the spacecraft to the Atlas 5 rocket over the weekend, setting the stage for an integrated systems test, a ‘tip-to-tail’ checkout of the entire vehicle.”
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Tag: Boeing CST 100
Weather Primary Concern for Starliner Launch
Space News reports that NASA and The Boeing Company “say a second test flight of the company’s CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle remains on track for launch July 30, with weather the biggest concern.” A launch readiness review “for the uncrewed Orbital Flight Test (OFT) 2 mission July 27 confirmed that both the Starliner spacecraft and its Atlas 5 launch vehicle were ready for the launch, scheduled for 2:53 p.m. Eastern July 30 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.” Officials have determined that the launch has a 40% chance for favorable weather conditions Friday. If weather “or other issues prevent a launch on July 30, the next launch opportunities are” August 3 and August 4.
Full Story (Space News)