--- title: "Boeing Reportedly Melting Down Over Disastrous Spacecraft" description: "Boeing and its supplier, Aerojet Rocketdyne, are playing the blame game as the May 19 launch date for Starliner approaches swiftly." date: "2022-05-11" modified: "2022-05-11" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/boeing-aerojet-blame-starliner" categories: - "Boeing" - "Space" tags: - "aerojet rocketdyne" - "boeing" - "NASA" - "starliner" - "the digest" --- # Boeing Reportedly Melting Down Over Disastrous Spacecraft ![Boeing and its supplier, Aerojet Rocketdyne, are playing the blame game as the May 19 launch date for Starliner approaches swiftly.]() *TOPSHOT - A detailed view of the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft shows one of the glass windows with a protective covering outside their Commercial Cargo and Processing Facility in the pre-dawn hours at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on July 17, 2021, ahead of its scheduled launch on July 30. (Photo by Gregg Newton / AFP) (Photo by GREGG NEWTON/AFP via Getty Images) \Image: Getty Images\* ## A Curse Upon You Boeing's Starliner, it seems, may be cursed. As [*Reuters* reports](), Boeing and its supplier, Aerojet Rocketdyne, are playing the blame game as the May 19 launch date for Starliner approaches swiftly — even as the rocket itself continues to have major issues. Just a week after a [part appeared to fall off of Starliner]() as it was being taken to the launchpad for tests, this latest trouble stems from a fuel valve issue for which both Boeing and Aerojet both blame the other, sources familiar with the matter told *Reuters*. In a statement provided to the news agency, Boeing admitted that it is "working on short- and long-term design changes to the valves," alluding to a serious issue, [first reported last year](), that's pushed back the test date for the spacecraft significantly. ## Tough Break There's been a bevy of problems with the Starliner project, meant to establish Boeing as a proper competitor to SpaceX capable of ferrying crew and cargo to the International Space Station. From [burning fuel way too fast]() to ever reach the International Space Station to [skipping crucial software tests](), Starliner's history has been fraught with setbacks that make it hard to believe it will ever truly be able to compete with SpaceX — which, in spite of its own repeated setbacks and failures, has become the only private spaceflight company capable of moving astronauts and goods to and from the space station. The big question now? What we're going to see on that May 19 launch date. **READ MORE:** [Boeing clashes with key supplier ahead of Starliner spacecraft launch]() \[*Reuters*\] **More on Starliner fails:** *[NASA Quietly Signals That Boeing's Spacecraft Is Going Nowhere]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()