OFT-2 RETRY FLIGHT READINESS REVIEW MEDIA BRIEFING, May 11, 2022, virtual, 5:30 pm ET

Update, May 11, 5:00 pm ET:  NASA *just* changed the time for this media briefing to 30 minutes EARLIER than announced. Now at 5:30 pm ET.

Update, May 9:  The post-FRR media telecon is on May 11, 2022 at 6:00 pm ET.  It will air on NASA Live.  Participants are:

• Kathryn Lueders, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate
• Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
• Joel Montalbano, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
• Emily Nelson, acting chief flight director, NASA’s Flight Operations Directorate
• Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Boeing Commercial Crew Program

Original Entry: During a media telecon on May 3, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Kathy Lueders said the Flight Readiness Review for the second attempt to launch Boeing’s Starliner uncrewed Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) will be on May 11.  They are targeting May 19 for launch.

The first attempt to launch OFT-2 was scrubbed about 2 hours before launch because 13 propellant valves would not open. They have been troubleshooting and fixing the problems since then and are ready to try again.

OFT-2 is the second attempt to demonstrate Starliner — Boeing’s commercial crew vehicle to ferry crews to and from the International Space Station — with no crew aboard. The first Orbital Flight Test (OFT) was December 20-22, 2019 but was only partially successful and Boeing decided to fly Starliner again without a crew before putting people on board, hence “OFT-2.”