Boeing Starliner capsule nears completion of pivotal test flight to orbit

FILE PHOTO: File photo: Boeing's CST-100 Starliner capsule launches aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket on a second un-crewed test flight to the International Space Station, at Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. May 19, 2022. REUTERS/Steve Nesius

(Reuters) - The new Boeing Starliner capsule was due to descend back to Earth on Wednesday from its first uncrewed journey to the International Space Station (ISS), completing a high-stakes test flight as NASA's next vehicle for carrying humans to orbit.

Less than a week after its launch from the Cape Canaveral U.S. Space Force Base in Florida, the CST-100 Starliner was scheduled to autonomously undock from the space station at 2:36 p.m. EDT (1836 GMT) to embark on a five-hour-plus return flight.