- [Man] One and lift off!
The rise of Starliner and a new era in human space flight.
- [Presenter] In 2019, Boeing and NASA attempted
to send an uncrewed spacecraft
to the International Space Station
but the test flight failed to reach the correct orbit.
It was just one in a series of issues
the company's space program has faced in recent years.
Now, as Boeing gears up to launch Starliner again,
all eyes are on the company.
If it succeeds the test flight could renew investor
and customer confidence in Boeing space program.
But if it fails, it could put a dent
in the already weakened aerospace company.
- So it's a big challenge with very high stakes
and a lot of national and corporate pride at stake
and a lot of money at stake.
- [Presenter] Here's how Boeing,
which was once the gold standard of the stars,
got to this point.
For decades Boeing was at the cutting edge
of the space industry.
- They've been involved in every major NASA development.
- [Presenter] This is Steven Ganote.
A space industry veteran who's consulted
in the industry for 15 years.
- They built critical communication satellites for NASA
and for others in the commercial
and the national security industry.
- [Presenter] In 2014 Boeing was awarded a NASA contract
worth as much as $4.2 billion
but just four years later an external audit found
that the world's largest aerospace company was struggling.
At October, 2018, at the direction of Congress,
NASA released an audit of its Space Launch System,
also known as the SLS.
This Deep Space Explorer is the most powerful rocket
NASA has ever developed and is one
of the agency's largest contracts with Boeing.
NASA audit found that the project was years behind schedule
and billions of dollars over budget due in part
to management, technical and infrastructure issues driven
by Boeing's poor performance.
- What the auditor's report did was surface
to the space division some of the engineering challenges
that seem to have seeped throughout the company,
both its broader defense and commercial jetliner business.
- [Presenter] Doug Cameron has covered Boeing
and the larger aerospace and defense industry
for over 30 years.
He explains that as the development
of the Space Launch System continued,
Boeing was juggling another high profile contract
with NASA as well.
The Commercial Crew Program which aims to send astronauts
and cargo to and from the international space station
inside of Boeing Starliner crew capsule.
- Boeing was the original prime contractor and integrator
for the International Space Station so they helped design
and implement that from inception
and they still helped to operate the space station.
And being able to bring astronauts up on a Boeing capsule
to the station is something that Boeing has set out
as a major goal for its space program.
(rocket roaring)
- [Presenter] When Starliner launched in December, 2019,
it was a critical moment for Boeing.
But just minutes into the test flight,
NASA's controllers knew something had gone wrong.
- So we did have, obviously, some challenges today.
When the spacecraft separated from the launch vehicle,
we did not get the orbital insertion burn
that we were hoping for.
- [Presenter] The spacecraft's internal timer was off
by 11 hours stranding it in the wrong orbit
which prevented it from being able
to reach the International Space Station.
- The failure in 2019 of the On-Orbit Test to Starliner
was driven primarily due to faulty software
and maybe more importantly faulty software testing.
Boeing chose to design tests in a way
that were not truly representative
or tied to the actual vehicle itself.
- [Presenter] And these mistakes were costly.
Boeing has taken a $410 million charge
primarily to run a second test.
This is about 10% of the program's entire budget.
A Boeing spokesperson said that since the first test flight
the company has made important changes to the software code
that are consistent with the recommendations
of the Boeing-NASA independent review team.
- So I think Boeing has invested in this both with its brand
as a great and historic engineering company
that has been serving NASA since its inception
but also financially because Boeing, as we all know,
overall is in much more difficult financial circumstances
due to the pandemic and problems
with their commercial aircraft
and that puts an even higher spotlight
on the performance of Starliner.
- [Presenter] Since Starliner's orbital failure in 2019,
Boeing space program has faced a series
of additional challenges.
In 2020, federal prosecutors opened a criminal probe
into whether a senior NASA official improperly told
a Boeing executive about the status
of a lunar lander contract causing the company
to change its bid.
Boeing ultimately lost the contract to competitors
and in January, 2021 the company faced another setback
when the main engines
for the Space Launch System shut down prematurely
during a ground test.
- These problems are to be expected
that's why you do the testing.
The problem for Boeing is it's the latest in a series
of very high profile failures and obviously have customers
and Boeing investors asking the question
when will they get it right?
- [Presenter] But despite years of issues
and wavering faith from NASA,
Boeing has seen successes in the space industry as well.
It's a 50:50 partner in the United Launch Alliance,
a company which has successfully launched
over 140 consecutive missions,
more than any other launch program in the world.
Boeing has also developed satellites, spacesuits
and other technology for NASA
and continues to play a key role in the maintenance
of the International Space Station.
For Boeing, the space program is a key part of the company.
It's part of its Defense, Space and Security unit,
Boeing's largest by revenue after a sharp drop
in aircraft deliveries over the past two years.
With travel demand still weak due to the pandemic,
experts say Boeing will likely continue to rely on the unit.
This is one reason all eyes are
on the company's next test launch of Starliner.
The spacecraft's second uncrewed flight was slated for March
but has been pushed back
due to scheduling and repair delays.
For Boeing, the pressure is on.
The company is already far behind competitor SpaceX
which has successfully launched astronauts to the ISS
as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program.
- The entire industry will be looking at Boeing
who's already named astronauts that it would like to fly.
Those astronauts are ready and waiting to go up
on a Boeing vehicle but Boeing needs
to make sure that vehicle is safe.
It needs to make sure that not only all of the mechanical
and normal challenges are addressed but all of the software
and the software testing and oversight challenges
have been addressed and have been managed by the company.
- [Presenter] If the launch is a success,
astronauts could be flying
to the International Space Station
inside Boeing Starliner later this year.
This would be a big win for Boeing at large.
The company CEO, David Calhoun,
said that Boeing was, "Proud of all the products
and services our engineers have developed
and delivered to our commercial and military customers
over these last difficult years
and of the meaningful progress we are making
in safety, transparency and quality."
The success or failure
of Starliner will help determine the future of Boeing
and its role in the exploration
and commercialization of outer space.