Piece Falls Off Boeing Starliner as It Trundles Toward Launchpad
DannyB writes:
Piece Falls Off Boeing Starliner as It Trundles Toward Launchpad
That probably wasn't supposed to happen.
Oops!
After years of setbacks, Boeing is finally rolling out its Starliner spacecraft to the launchpad today for its second attempt to rendezvous with the International Space Station.
Doing no favors for the spacecraft's reputation for jankiness, it ran into yet another mishap along the way. While strapped to the back of a large truck, a piece of the capsule's window appeared to pop off, tumbling down to the asphalt, as spotted in footage shared by CBS space news reporter William Harwood.
[....] The procession briefly stopped to check for damage before resuming its journey to Space Launch Complex 41 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Boeing later confirmed to Harwood that it was a protective window cover that had fallen off the capsule.
All told, it doesn't sound like a terribly serious issue, but the optics are terrible considering what Boeing has been through with the development of Starliner, its competitor to SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule.
Hey, first Starliner spacefright crew... don't worry. I'm sure the rest of the Starliner is made to the high standards that we've come to expect from Boeing.
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