Not sure if anyone has seen this yet. Significant update to the flight plan schedules. https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2018/10/04/nasas-commercial-crew-program-target-test-flight-dates-4/Boeing Orbital Flight Test (uncrewed): March 2019Boeing Crew Flight Test (crewed): August 2019SpaceX Demo-1 (uncrewed): January 2019SpaceX Demo-2 (crewed): June 2019
Quote from: FinalFrontier on 10/05/2018 07:15 pmNot sure if anyone has seen this yet. Significant update to the flight plan schedules. https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2018/10/04/nasas-commercial-crew-program-target-test-flight-dates-4/Boeing Orbital Flight Test (uncrewed): March 2019Boeing Crew Flight Test (crewed): August 2019SpaceX Demo-1 (uncrewed): January 2019SpaceX Demo-2 (crewed): June 2019saw it....wasn't happy about it. I also looked for different articles to explain the delay. Some stating SpaceX/Boeing are delaying, some stating "NASA is pushing [launches] out"....would like to know real reason. SpaceX has indicated that they are ready for a Nov/Dec launch. Boeing is playing a bit of catch up due to their engine leak issue from earlier in the year. It has been stated on occasion (also by the review panel) that one major delay right now is all of the certification paperwork that NASA has to get through. Hans sort of alluded to it at the space conference earlier this month. If that's the real issue, I just wish folks would own up to their issues rather than vaguely pointing fingers in the other direction via ambiguous word choice in publicly released statements. It is frustrating to be so close only to see thing continually slip out....30 days....60 days....6 months. They are now targeting NET NEXT December for the post certification missions to the ISS. Sorry....frustrated rant over.....just want to see the us move forward to the next chapter.
{snip}It is frustrating to be so close only to see thing continually slip out....30 days....60 days....6 months. They are now targeting NET NEXT December for the post certification missions to the ISS. Sorry....frustrated rant over.....just want to see the us move forward to the next chapter.
It appeared to me that SpaceX had the hardware in place in August but the political pause button was pressed for 3 months, it appears to of been pressed again,
It appeared to me that SpaceX had the hardware in place in August but the political pause button was pressed for 3 months, ...
The pictures of the dragon capsule doing its final vibration testing at the beginning of August showed it mounted on a trunk, with the caption tests completed packing up to ship to the cap. It would make sense to test both the capsule and the trunk for launch vibration together, and ship them together.
Really glad crew are safe after today's Soyuz failure.I expect Soyuz to be grounded for a while so CC schedule is going to be 'interesting' now. NASA won't cut any corners but I wonder if there are any further opportunities to speed up the necessary paperwork?Edit to add:I understand current ISS crew may need to come back by end of this year due to limits on Soyuz capsule time in space? If so, then ISS is empty so can CC test flights happen with no-one on ISS?
I am also glad the crew are safe. It will take time to realize the full implication of this failure. As IIS is now, the last 2 astronauts will have to return by end January. Without any crew on ISS, there can be no commercial crew uncrewed test flights. This was a very serious failure and it is unlikely Russia will be back in business in under a half year at best. It is only just conceivable that Dragon2 can make its DM1 flight before the ISS is abandoned. Forget about resupply flights they wont be needed, and after January there will be no one there to handle them. The other possible problem is that the soyuz up there may have some other sabotage and wont be safe to return on. There is an awful lot to do for both NASA and Russia before January, I do hope all works out well. Interesting times.
ASAP meeting intro - current published Commercial Crew schedule probably isn't achievable