Boeing’s Starliner has yet again another issue to resolve.
According to Reuters, Boeing and its supplier, Aerojet Rocketdyne, are going back and forth in taking responsibility for these issues. Its launch date is approaching soon on May 19, and it is still going through issues.
Earlier, one of its parts seemed to have fallen off Starliner when it was being carried to the launchpad for tests. Now, a week later, an issue has come up from its fuel valve for which both Boeing and Aerojet are blaming each other.
In a statement provided to the news agency, Boeing admitted that it is “working on short- and long-term design changes to the valves,” alluding to a serious issue, first reported last year, that’s pushed back the test date for the spacecraft significantly.
Starliner project was aimed to serve as a proper competitor to SpaceX capable of ferrying crew and cargo to the International Space Station. However, it doesn’t seem to match SpaceX.
This is not the first time Starliner has been in serious trouble. It only seems to have become the only private spaceflight company capable of moving astronauts and goods to and from the space station.
It is intriguing to think about what it will exhibit on its launch date on May 19.