Linda Herridge – Page 12 – Commercial Crew Program

The Atlas V to Launch Starliner Crew Missions to Station Arrives at Launch Site

The ULA Atlas V booster for Boeing's Crew Flight Test is backed into the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center at CCAFS on June 5. 2019. — The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V booster that will be used for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT) is backed into the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center (ASOC) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on June 5, 2019. The ULA Atlas V rocket will launch Starliner and its crew to the International Space Station for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Inside the ASOC, the booster will await the start of operations for its missions. The CFT will demonstrate Starliner and Atlas V’s ability to safely carry crew to and from the orbiting laboratory. Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V booster that will be used for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT) is moved out of the Mariner cargo ship at the Army Wharf at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on June 5, 2019. Photo Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket that will launch Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft on its Crew Flight Test (CFT) to the International Space Station for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program arrived on Saturday at Cape Canaveral Force Station in Florida.

The booster stage and the Dual Engine Centaur upper stage of the Atlas V rocket, designated AV-082, arrived on ULA’s Mariner cargo ship from the company’s facility in Decatur, Alabama.

The Atlas V rocket now located in the company’s Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center at Cape Canaveral will undergo receiving checks and await the start of operations for its mission. The CFT mission will take NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Nicole Mann, and Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson to the station to demonstrate Starliner and Atlas V’s ability to safely carry crew to and from the orbiting laboratory.

The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V booster that will be used for Boeing’s Crew Flight Test (CFT) is transported to the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center (ASOC) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on June 5, 2019. Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

CFT will be the second Starliner flight following the uncrewed Orbital Flight Test (OFT) that is targeted to launch to the station in August. The rocket for OFT, called AV-080, was brought to the Cape last year.

Both flights are key elements of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program that will return the nation’s capability to launch astronauts into orbit on American rockets and spacecraft from U.S. soil. Regular commercial transportation using Boeing’s Starliner and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft to and from the space station will enable the addition of another crew member, expanded station use, and additional research time aboard the orbiting laboratory. This time will help address the challenges of moving humanity toward the Moon and Mars as we learn how to keep astronauts healthy during long-duration space travel and demonstrate technologies for human and robotic exploration beyond low-Earth orbit, to the Moon and Mars.

NASA’s Commercial Crew, DoD Teams Conduct Crew Rescue Exercise

Rescue team members stand on the stabilization collar attached to the Boeing CST-100 Starliner training capsule, known as Boiler Plate 3, during a search and rescue training exercise April 16, 2019. The exercise will be conducted over the next several days at the Army Wharf at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and in the Atlantic Ocean. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

NASA and the Department of Defense Human Space Flight Support (HSFS) Office Rescue Division are conducting a search and rescue training exercise over the next several days at the Army Warf on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and in the Atlantic Ocean. This is the first at-sea exercise with the Boeing CST-100 Starliner training capsule, known as Boiler Plate 3, ahead of the commercial crew flight test with astronauts targeted for later this year.

The HSFS teams have supported all NASA human spaceflight programs and will be on standby for both NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and Orion launches and landings. The team is responsible for quickly and safely rescuing astronauts in the unlikely event of an emergency during ascent, free flight or landing. This multi-day exercise consists of ground- and water- based training to prepare the DoD pararescue team for an emergency situation on ascent. The HSFS teams will rehearse locating the Starliner spacecraft, sending out rescue teams to extract DoD team members, acting as astronauts, from the capsule and providing immediate medical treatment. The HSFS team will arrange for pickup, transport and follow-on medical care.

At the conclusion of this exercise, HSFS will complete a full mission profile to validate best practices for configuring and air-dropping U.S. Air Force Pararescue team members from a C-17 aircraft with their associated watercraft, specialized rescue equipment and advanced medical capabilities. HSFS conducted a similar exercise with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft in early December 2018.

This simulation is another example of how safety is being built into systems, processes and procedures for commercial crew missions. It is standard practice to conduct these exercises, and was regularly done during the Space Shuttle Program.

During normal return scenarios, Boeing’s Starliner will land on land in a safe zone of about 15 square miles in the Western United States. Throughout the commercial crew development phases with NASA, Boeing has performed dozens of qualification tests on its parachute and airbag systems simulating conditions on land and in the water.

NASA Announces Updated Crew Assignment for Boeing Flight Test

Astronaut Edward M. (Mike) Fincke, Expedition 9 NASA ISS science officer and flight engineer, performs one of multiple tests of the Capillary Flow Experiment investigation in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station in September 2004. Photo credit: NASA

NASA astronaut E. Michael “Mike” Fincke has been added to the crew of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner’s Crew Flight Test, scheduled to launch later this year.

Fincke takes the place of astronaut Eric Boe, originally assigned to the mission in August 2018. Boe is unable to fly due to medical reasons; he will replace Fincke as the assistant to the chief for commercial crew in the astronaut office at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.

Fincke will begin training immediately alongside NASA’s Nicole Mann and Boeing’s Chris Ferguson, who were both assigned to the mission in August 2018.

The Starliner’s Crew Flight Test will be the first time that the new spacecraft, which is being developed and built by Boeing as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, is launched into space with humans on board.

For more information: https://go.nasa.gov/2UaSBOV.

NASA, Boeing May Evolve Flight Test Strategy

An artist image of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft docking to the International Space Station. Image credit: Boeing

NASA updated its Commercial Crew Transportation Capabilities (CCtCap) contract with Boeing, which provides flexibility in its commercial flight tests to the International Space Station. Boeing, one of the agency’s two commercial crew partners, approached NASA last year and proposed adding a third crew member on its Crew Flight Test (CFT) to the International Space Station. Adding a third crew member on Boeing’s flight test could offer NASA additional flexibility to ensure continued U.S. access to the orbital laboratory. The modification also identifies cargo capabilities for the company’s uncrewed and crewed test flights. Exact details of how to best take advantage of the contract modification are under evaluation, but the changes could allow for additional microgravity research, maintenance, and other activities while Starliner is docked to station.

For more details, visit https://go.nasa.gov/2GVbxy6.