(Reuters) -Boeing Co will return its CST-100 Starliner to the factory to resolve a valve issue, the company said on Friday, delaying the launch date of the space capsule to the International Space Station.
The planemaker told NASA that it would remove the Starliner from the Atlas V rocket and send it for deeper troubleshooting of four propulsion system valves.
The CST-100 Starliner will take people to and from a low-earth orbit. Boeing is competing with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to take NASA astronauts to the space station from the United States.
“We’ll continue to work the issue from the Starliner factory and have decided to stand down for this launch window to make way for other national priority missions,” Boeing said in a statement https://starlinerupdates.com/starliner-returning-to-factory-to-resolve-valve-issue.
The relocation of the spacecraft will require Boeing, NASA and United Launch Alliance to agree on a new launch date once the valve issue is resolved, the planemaker said.
Earlier this month, Boeing scrubbed the launch of the much awaited Starliner to the International Space Station after discovering a glitch in its propulsion system valves during pre-launch checks.
The Wall Street Journal had earlier reported the news citing people familiar with the matter.
(Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
