Everything You Need to Know About Boeing OFT

Everything You Need to Know about Boeing’s Orbital Flight Test

On Fri. Dec 20 at 5:36 a.m. CT the Orbital Flight Test (OFT) of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft will launch to the International Space Station as a certification mission for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. OFT is an uncrewed mission that will test the rocket and spacecraft that Boeing will use to launch astronauts from US soil during commercial crew missions targeted for 2020.

Catch all the excitement of the launch at JSC Viewing Party in the Teague Lobby (CLICK FOR DETAILS). If you can't make it to the celebration, you can also stream the launch on NASA TV and the agency’s website.

A new spacecraft comes with plenty of systems and procedures that must be tested, so we sat down with Richard Jones and Robert Dempsey, the lead NASA Flight Directors for Boeing’s OFT to learn more about the mission and what will take place.

What is the high level purpose of OFT?

Richard Jones: OFT will test the Starliner spacecraft in an unmanned configuration to validate all of the systems and vehicle performance prior to putting NASA crew members onboard. Starliner has undergone extensive design and ground testing, but having a fully integrated mission allows us to verify the systems in the space environment.

Why does NASA require an uncrewed test flight before putting astronauts on board?

Robert Dempsey: This was a requirement laid out to all the commercial partners when they were developing their plans to build and certify a reliable crewed transport vehicle. Flying an uncrewed mission allows us to check all the functions of the spacecraft – rendezvous, life support, temperature control and communications - before humans are put onboard. 

What milestones will take place during the OFT mission?

Jones: One really interesting milestone is that this mission will mark the first time that NASA’s Flight Operations Directorate has operated a spacecraft that is not a government vehicle. For Boeing’s commercial flights, NASA’s civil servants and contractors operate the vehicle rather than a Boeing flight control team. This missions will also be the first flight of the Atlas-V Emergency Detection System, a key safety capability that will keep astronauts safe during the ascent mission phase, and the first time that a crew vehicle will land using airbags below the capsule to cushion the landing.

What demonstrations and tests will take place on the way to the space station?

Dempsey: While Starliner is approaching station, the main demonstration is really testing the Vision-based, Electro-Optical Sensor Tracking Assembly (VESTA). This is part of the transportation technology that will guide the capsule to docking by using navigation sensors able to locate the station and calculate where the capsule is and will correct its trajectory to move toward docking. This will also give the ground teams and the space station crew an opportunity to test the ability to hold, resume, retreat and abort the spacecraft in the event there is an anomaly during approach.

Jones: Another important test will be able to test the systems capabilities for an ascent abort using the Emergency Detection System on board the spacecraft. Although this mission will not have ascent abort capability, the operations team will be able to monitor the data from launch and see how the spacecraft was thinking.

How will those demonstrations prove readiness for a crewed mission?

Dempsey: During OFT, the rendezvous profile (spacecraft trajectory), as well as the operation of equipment like the life support system, will be operated exactly as we plan to when the astronauts are onboard. This is especially important with a crewed mission since we will be practically screaming toward the station, trying to get the crew there as quickly and safely as possible. Performing these tests on an uncrewed mission will demonstrate that everything is ready for the crew.

What involvement will the crew on board station have with dynamic activities for the flight?

Dempsey: During rendezvous and departure, the crew on station will use cameras on the exterior of the space station to monitor the Starliner to ensure it is flying as expected. If Starliner experiences a problem and deviates from its expected trajectory, the ground team will have the ability to send the spacecraft safely away so they fix the problem. However, if for some reason this safeguard is not working, the crew can command the vehicle to abort and send the vehicle away or hold while the ground trouble shoots.

What will take place once the capsule has docked to space station?

Dempsey: Once docked the crew will perform activities like transfer cargo between Starliner and station as well as perform some checkouts on the vehicle. For example, the crew will take one of the space station’s Portable Computer System laptops into Starliner to verify that it can connect and talk to station computers. The crew will also check out the audio system to see how their speech is processed all over the space station and down to Mission Control.

Are there any additional objectives after undocking?

Jones: During the high-speed mission phase of entry, descent, and landing, the Starliner will demonstrate maneuverability in the Earth’s atmosphere. This will be done as the Guidance, Navigation and Control System and the Landing and Recovery Systems targets a pin-point landing to one of our five landing sites across the country.

How will the mission be controlled?

Dempsey: The vehicle technically runs autonomously. However, the ground teams will activate the spacecraft on the launch vehicle. The Mission Operations team will then monitor Starliner after launch to make sure everything is performing as expected. During the flight, the ground team will be commanding some of the operations and will be initiating some of the demonstrations.  

How have the teams been preparing?

Jones: The Mission Operation team has been working closely with the designers and developers for many years, so we know a great deal about how the system will operate. Flight controllers also have performed targeted simulations of individual systems using what we call a Part Task Trainer. After learning these specific systems, we began more broad, basic mission simulations where walked through the timeline or various scenarios while computers mimic the vehicles systems and telemetry. 

Dempsey: The Part Task Trainers and simulations let us practice overcoming system failures and performing complex operations. We used that to update our procedures and flight rules and after we gained enough experience, we completed formal mission simulations, including joint simulations with the station team and the United Launch Alliance team. Our team has also been supporting key tests on the ground such as when the assembled vehicle was powered up for the first time or when the launch abort engines were fired.

How will NASA measure whether this mission was successful?

Jones: This mission is truly a dry run of the Crewed Flight Test and we are going to approach it from that mindset. We are going to make sure that we check out Starliner’s various systems, successful docking/undocking with station, and successful reentry and landing to trust that we can put an astronaut on board.

Boeing OFT is scheduled to launch on Fri. Dec 20 at 5:36 a.m. CT.  A live broadcast of the launch will appear on NASA TV, stay tuned to Roundup for broadcast details. 

To learn more about NASA's Commercial Crew Program, read the Directors Series with program manager Steve Stich HERE.