Boeing's second attempt to launch Starliner scheduled for May 2022

Boeing announced on December 13th that it will be launching its Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) in May 2022, after initial setbacks.

Following the previous attempt to make Starliner flight-ready, Boeing and NASA have spent the last four months troubleshooting the cause of several stuck valves on the propulsion system that scrubbed the mission. OFT-2, the Starliner's second orbital test flight, is scheduled for sometime in May 2022, where Boeing will launch the craft to the ISS aboard an Atlas V rocket.

"NASA has been working side-by-side with Boeing on the service module valve investigation, including leveraging the agency's materials and propellants expertise to better characterize the potential causes of the issue," said Steve Stich, NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager.

The first orbital flight test took place in December 2019 but failed to arrive at the ISS due to several software anomalies. The second orbital test flight was initially scheduled for August 2021, corrosion sealed off five of the thirteen propulsion system valves. The other nine were unstuck, but engineers ultimately had to reschedule the test.