Maybe, just maybe, Boeing’s Starliner will finally fly astronauts this spring

Enlarge / Boeing's Starliner crew module for the upcoming Crew Flight Test was mated with the spacecraft's service module last year in Florida. (credit: Boeing/Deborah Circelli)

We've heard this before, but Boeing appears to be a couple of months from finally launching astronauts into orbit aboard the commercial CST-100 Starliner crew capsule.

It was about two months prior to this mission's previous launch date last July when Boeing and NASA officials decided to put a hold on launch preparations. During their final reviews to certify Starliner for flight nearly a year ago, engineers discovered two technical issues that somehow escaped detection for years.

One of these issues involved parts of Starliner's parachute deployment system that did not meet required safety specifications. The other was a revelation that Boeing installed flammable tape wrapped around wiring bundles throughout the spacecraft, creating a potential fire hazard. These were the latest in a line of technical problems that have plagued the Starliner program, delaying the new spacecraft's first test flight with astronauts from 2017 until this year.