Boeing spacecraft carrying two NASA astronauts lifts off in historic launch

Always been exiting about the space projects.
Indeed, Boeing is in the news, and jokes are being made, but it's a proud moment for this project for them, and it's needed.
World-class company, have many friends working there. Too bad the other news is happening, but many big companies at times deal
with failures, Toyota, another company I worked for, was caught cheating on their vehicle certifications and halted shipments of some models.

Actually I used to work for Rockwell and remember our 6 or so plants were sold to Boeing, I almost ended up with Boeing.
But last minute one of the directors transferred me to his team, in to Telecom and later ecommerce division.

 

LIVE: Boeing Starliner docks at the International Space Station

 

The astronauts are stranded in space.

https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration/astronauts-stranded-in-space-due-to-multiple-issues-with-boeings-starliner-and-the-window-for-a-return-flight-is-closing

 

This article didn't make one point as clear as a different article I read. That is that the problem is in the backend of the module. This backend will be jettisoned prior to reentry and will burn up during reentry. So they want to get as much info on the problem as possible but this has to be done before they head back. They could head back any time they wanted so they are not really stranded per say.

 

“We are letting the data drive our decision-making relative to managing the small helium system leaks and thruster performance we observed during rendezvous and docking.”

The space agency also said Wilmore and Williams are not "stranded" as they could undock and fly home at any time if deemed necessary. They are being kept in orbit passed their planned return to "allow mission teams time to review propulsion system data."

The schedule is flexible, they have till mid Aug..

 

The issues with the Boeing spacecraft may be more serious than previously believed, and the astronauts might have to be rescued by another spacecraft. They could end up being there until February 2025. We should know by now that Boeing can't be trusted.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/07/science/boeing-starliner-nasa-spacex.html

 

Boeing is kind of interesting to me. It used to be run by engineers that had been promoted into management. The company then switched gears and hired business managers to run the place. This apparently helped them improve profitability. The cost of that improvement was obviously too great. It came at the cost of quality and safety. Those are much harder things to measure and enforce.

The reason I find that interesting is because I noticed some similar dynamics at the companies that I used to work for. The company management calling the shots has an interesting impact on how things work throughout the whole company.

 

Indeed, there was a healthy mix of Engineers who became managers and administartors managers.
As my company (Rockwell) in the 90s sold all defence plants to Boeing, many of my friends coworkers ended up working for Boeing.
We still keep in touch. While they don't share any information, they do share some of what transpired.
When and where it's toxic.
The problem I'm told isn't just with their airplanes. Since they merged with McDonnell Douglas, management practices and business culture are rotten to the core.
That's what I hear, I can't prove it just anecdotal.
CEO of Boeing emphasized that safety is still very much a core value at Boeing and that their planes are perfectly safe. As journalists and congressmen dug deep, they uncovered that the real problem was not faulty software or engineering — but in the leadership and culture of Boeing.

 

It seems pretty obvious that this is true, just from the public reporting.

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/boeing-starliner-astronauts-will-stay-in-space-6-more-months-before-returning-with-spacex-nasa-says-how-we-got-to-this-point-174705602.html
The Boeing Starliner astronauts who are stuck in space will remain in orbit until February before returning home on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule, NASA said Saturday.
on Saturday, NASA announced that Wilmore and Williams will depart with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft as part of the space organization’s “commitment to safety.” The Starliner will return to Earth unpiloted and could land in New Mexico as early as Sept. 6.

 

An 8-day stay turned into 8 months. I feel bad for them.

 

Don't feel bad for them. I'm sure they are having the time of their lives!

 

They do exercise designed to counter some of those issues, as much as they can. It’s going to be less than a year. Maybe they might have to just turn gravity down a little bit at their house while they readjust.

 

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/09/03/space-force-guardian-will-command-mission-bring-stranded-astronauts-back-earth.html?amp=

Space force guardians will command mission bringing the strained astronauts back to Earth.