NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will launch no earlier than September 24, on the agency's SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. The updated crew complement follows NASA's decision to return the agency's Boeing Crew Flight Test uncrewed
Officials have repeatedly hinted that the Starliner, which faced issues with helium leaks and thruster outages heading to the International Space Station in early June, will be safe to bring astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore home.
The two NASA astronauts were scheduled to return on June 14. However, the pair has no set date to return to Earth as their return has been delayed multiple times.
"NASA, Boeing, and ULA (United Launch Alliance) are forgoing a Crew Flight Test launch attempt on June 2, to give the team additional time to assess a ground support equipment issue," NASA said today.
NASA announced on social media platform X that the problem was identified with an oxygen valve on part of ULA's Atlas 5 rocket and that the space agency, Boeing and ULA have "scrubbed the launch opportunity on May 6 for the agency's Boeing Crew Flight Test to the International Space Station
The duo will launch to space from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida in the first crewed test flight of Starliner. The flight, if it succeeds will become the second private firm being able to provide crew transport to and from the ISS. Boeing's competitor Elon Musk's SpaceX was