Boeing is closer to understanding thruster failures on its first astronaut flight with latest test

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Boeing is closer to understanding what went wrong with its astronaut capsule in orbit, now that testing is complete on a spare thruster here on Earth. It should have returned with its NASA test pilots by mid-June, but thruster failures and helium leaks prompted NASA and Boeing to extend its stay. “We collected an incredible amount of data on the thruster that could help us better understand what is going on in flight,” NASA’s commercial crew program manager Steve Stich said in a statement. The testing managed to replicate the thruster conditions up until the capsule’s docking at the space station, as well as what the thrusters will experience between undocking and descent, according to NASA.