Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft and its crew have been in space for more than a month — much longer than the week-long stay initially expected.
The vehicle suffered technical problems that delayed its return indefinitely, and there is still no return date on the horizon.
But the two astronauts piloting this historic test mission spoke mostly favorably about the vehicle that took them to the International Space Station, marking the inaugural crewed flight of the Boeing-built spacecraft.
“The launch was spectacular. I mean, really incredible,” Butch Wilmore, one of two NASA astronauts commanding the mission, said at a news conference Wednesday (10). “And then we went into our operational capabilities checks, and the spacecraft performed incredibly well.”
Wilmore praised the vehicle’s precise control. But he also said that when several thrusters unexpectedly failed as Starliner approached its docking port on the International Space Station, he felt the thrust was “degraded.”
“But fortunately, we practiced and were certified for manual control, so we took manual control for over an hour,” Wilmore added. In the end, all but one of the boosters were recovered before docking, according to NASA.
In addition to these thruster issues, Starliner experienced helium leaks on the first leg of its journey.
See photos of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft
Source: CNN Brasil
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