The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received positive news regarding the spacecraft’s return to Earth. Recent ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have grounded it in space since early June, has been completed. Boeing and NASA had been waiting for these tests to finalize plans for the Starliner’s return journey.
An update last week confirmed that testing of a Starliner Reaction Control System (RCS) thruster at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico is finished, and teams are now focused on analyzing the data. The objective of the tests was to observe thruster performance degradation, which will help understand why some thrusters were deactivated during flight and assess the potential impact of returning them to service on the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to certain thrusters that ceased functioning. Prior to and during the Starliner launch, the helium tanks that control these thrusters were experiencing leaks, leading to several delays. During a press conference last month, officials indicated that the spacecraft has a supply of 70 hours’ worth of helium on board, despite only requiring seven hours for its functions. While they noted that the spacecraft could return if necessary, they also stated that preparations for this return are not yet fully complete.
NASA and Boeing previously indicated that a return flight could happen at the end of this month. However, the timeline is now less specific, with the latest updates stating that Boeing and NASA engineers will conduct thruster disassembly and inspections while finalizing flight rationale to support readiness reviews for the Starliner’s eventual return to Earth, which will include commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the coming weeks.