Boeing launches Starliner astronaut capsule on uncrewed test mission
Boeing's CST-100 Starliner lifted off toward the International Space Station on an Atlas V rocket the evening of May 19, 2022, attempting the docking milestone that eluded the spacecraft on its first try.
Boeing launched its CST-100 Starliner spacecraft on an uncrewed test mission toward the International Space Station the evening of Thursday, May 19, 2022, according to CNN Business. The capsule lifted off at 6:54 p.m. Eastern time atop an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, CNN reported.
The flight, designated OFT-2, followed two prior attempts that failed to complete the mission, per CNN's account. Boeing's goal this time was to prove the spacecraft could successfully rendezvous and dock with the ISS — the milestone that had eluded Starliner previously. Boeing's CST-100 Starliner is designed to ferry NASA astronauts to and from the space station.
Aboard the capsule were supplies for the astronauts already living on the ISS, along with a spacesuit-clad mannequin named Rosie, a nod to the World War II-era "Rosie the Riveter" figure, CNN reported. The retrieved coverage does not specify the full supply manifest or give an exact docking time for the mission.
A rocky path to this launch
CNN's report states plainly that this was Starliner's third attempt: "After two prior attempts to complete such a mission failed, Boeing's goal is to prove the spacecraft can dock with the ISS." The retrieved coverage does not detail what went wrong on the earlier attempts, only that neither reached a successful docking — which is why NASA and Boeing treated OFT-2's docking attempt as the central test of the May 2022 flight rather than a routine formality.
What the mission was testing
CNN's report frames the launch as a make-or-break demonstration for Boeing's crew-capsule program, which has lagged competitor SpaceX's Crew Dragon in reaching operational status for NASA astronaut flights. A successful, fully-automated rendezvous and docking with the ISS was the threshold Boeing needed to clear before NASA would consider certifying Starliner to carry astronauts. The retrieved coverage does not include post-launch confirmation of a successful docking within the same report, as it was filed around the time of liftoff.
US In News compiled this archived account from contemporaneous coverage by CNN Business. It restores a story originally published on this site in May 2022; figures are as reported at the time.