May 19, 2022, 09:50pm.
An uncrewed Boeing Starliner is en route to the International Space Station, marking what could become the capsule's first successful test launch, a major step in Boeing and NASA.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the Boeing Starliner crew capsule is about to lift off.
The Boeing Starliner lifted off. The capsule separated from the Atlas V rocket within 15 minutes, after which it used its engines to travel to the International Space Station.
Boeing said that the spaceship will reach the International Space Station on Friday at around 7:10 pm and will test its docking systems on the way back to Earth.
The Starliner is carrying about 800 pounds of cargo to the International Space Station.
The first crewed test flight of the Starliner may be by the end of the year, according to CNBC.
NASA struck a $4.2 billion contract with Boeing to carry its astronauts to the International Space Station, as the agency sought to return to using American-built spacecraft after retiring the space shuttle and outsourcing its crewed missions to Russia. NASA intended to use American craft to transport astronauts as early as 2017, but Boeing's program has been mired in delays and technical setbacks. The Starliner test launch went awry after the rocket separated from it, but failed to point itself onto the correct path due to a clock malfunction, and a planned August test was canceled after staffers discovered a valve issue. The Starliner program has cost Boeing $595 million.
NASA awarded a crewed spaceship contract to Musk's startup company. After facing apparent testing problems of its own, SpaceX launched its first crewed mission to the International Space Station in May 2020 and has flown four operational missions for NASA since then.
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