Boeing has successfully launched its Starliner capsule into orbit after safety concerns had grounded the manned spacecraft.
It was the third launch attempt for NASA test pilots Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams who boarded the Boeing capsule on Wednesday bound for the International Space Station.
A reported leak had thwarted the first two countdowns.
The astronauts will test Starliner’s systems on the way to the ISS, where they’ll spend at least a week before aiming for a touchdown in the western United States.
NASA hired Boeing along with SpaceX after the space shuttles retired to transport astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX has been ferrying astronauts since 2020.
Boeing’s capsule rocketed into orbit in 2019 without a crew, but that test flight was cut short by software problems. Boeing had better luck on the do-over mission in 2022, but parachute and other issues later were discovered, delaying Starliner’s crew debut even further.
Minutes before Saturday’s planned liftoff, a computer’s power unit failed at the pad that had to be replaced by rocket maker United Launch Alliance. And a bad valve inside the Atlas V rocket scrapped the launch attempt in early May.
