Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore Test Starliner’s Unique Manual Piloting Capabilities En Route to ISS

Boeing’s Starliner Capsule Demonstrates Manual Controls in Historic Flight with Indian-Origin Astronaut and NASA Commander

In a historic flight to the International Space Station (ISS), Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams and NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore tested Boeing's Starliner spacecraft's unique manual piloting capabilities. While the spacecraft is typically autonomous, the crew employed a hand controller to maneuver the spacecraft during two hours of free-flight demonstrations.

On June 5, 58-year-old Sunita Williams embarked on her third spaceflight alongside 61-year-old Wilmore, marking a significant milestone as the first crew members aboard Boeing's Starliner capsule, named Calypso, for a 25-hour journey to the ISS. Williams serves as the pilot for this critical flight test, with Wilmore as the mission commander.

During the free-flight demo, the crew manually pointed Starliner’s nose toward Earth to ensure its communications antenna on the Service Module aligned with the Tracking and Data Relay satellites. They then repositioned Starliner to direct its solar array at the sun, confirming their ability to manually charge the spacecraft’s batteries if necessary.

Further tests included orienting Starliner away from Earth to utilize the star trackers in the VESTA system for establishing spatial attitude without flight computers. The crew also demonstrated manual speed adjustments to alter their orbit and showcased the capability to break away from the space station orbit during rendezvous if needed. The final maneuver involved orienting Starliner for atmospheric entry while again positioning the solar array for battery charging.

More manual piloting tests are scheduled for docking day, June 6, as part of the Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. This mission is vital for certifying Starliner for regular crewed flights to the ISS. If successful, Starliner will join SpaceX's Crew Dragon as the second private spacecraft to transport astronauts to and from the ISS.

This flight is particularly significant for Boeing, which has faced delays and technical challenges throughout Starliner’s development, including a major software error during its first uncrewed test flight in 2019. NASA requested a second uncrewed test in 2022 to ensure corrections were made. The success of this crewed flight test is crucial for Boeing to validate Starliner’s readiness for operational missions.

Sunita Williams, already a record-holder for most spacewalks and spacewalk time by a woman, adds another milestone to her illustrious career by becoming the first woman to pilot a new spacecraft on a test mission in space. The mission also includes delivering over 500 pounds of cargo to the ISS. The crew will spend over a week aboard the ISS before returning to Earth, with a planned landing in a remote desert in the western United States on June 14.

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