When Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams lift off for the International Space Station on Monday (May 6), they will become the first astronauts to fly aboard Boeing’s commercial spacecraft, the CST-100 Starliner.But that’s not their only new ride.To go from their crew quarters in NASA’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to Complex 41, the launch pad where their Starliner-topped United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket will be waiting, Wilmore and Williams will board the “Astrovan II,” a modified Airstream Atlas Touring Coach built in partnership with Boeing.”It is epic,” said Wilmore during a virtual press conference broadcast from inside crew quarters on Wednesday (May 1). “I mean, you’re in the Astrovan.”Related: How to watch Boeing’s 1st Starliner astronaut launch webcasts live onlinethree astronauts in blue flight suits smile inside a gray vanSince NASA astronauts began flying on rockets in the early 1960s, the space agency — and later, its commercial partners — have customized vehicles to meet their crew members’ needs on the road to and at the launch pad. The Mercury astronauts had a semi truck with a modified trailer, which also served as a suit-up room. The two-man Gemini crews used a box van, while the Apollo astronauts rode aboard a modified Clark-Cortez motorhome.For most of the 30-year space shuttle program, including the missions that featured Wilmore and Williams as crew members, NASA chose an Airstream Excella motorhome. With its chrome exterior and simple red, white and blue stripe livery, the original Astrovan became iconic.So it seemed somewhat natural that Boeing would pick Airstream to develop the Astrovan II.”Airstream is truly proud to continue supporting adventures beyond our planet — we couldn’t have a better partner than Boeing,” said Bob Wheeler, the CEO and president of Airstream, in a 2019 interview with collectSPACE when the Astrovan II was shown to the public. “The Boeing crew will go from an Airstream to a rocket to the space station, and we couldn’t be more excited to be one leg of that journey into orbit.”the gray interior of a large van, showing six bucket seatsThough sharing a similar name and same manufacturer, the new Astrovan has little in common with its predecessor, as is immediately apparent from the exterior. Not only is it a different form factor, but the Astrovan II is wrapped in bold graphics that depict the Starliner in Earth orbit.Inside, the eight-seat van has amenities that were not even an option for the 1983 original.”It’s got cushy seats and, of course, it’s got a big video screen in the back,” said Wilmore, the commander of the upcoming Starliner mission, which is called Crew Flight Test.The flatscreen, high-definition television is for the crew’s e …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnWhen Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams lift off for the International Space Station on Monday (May 6), they will become the first astronauts to fly aboard Boeing’s commercial spacecraft, the CST-100 Starliner.But that’s not their only new ride.To go from their crew quarters in NASA’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to Complex 41, the launch pad where their Starliner-topped United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket will be waiting, Wilmore and Williams will board the “Astrovan II,” a modified Airstream Atlas Touring Coach built in partnership with Boeing.”It is epic,” said Wilmore during a virtual press conference broadcast from inside crew quarters on Wednesday (May 1). “I mean, you’re in the Astrovan.”Related: How to watch Boeing’s 1st Starliner astronaut launch webcasts live onlinethree astronauts in blue flight suits smile inside a gray vanSince NASA astronauts began flying on rockets in the early 1960s, the space agency — and later, its commercial partners — have customized vehicles to meet their crew members’ needs on the road to and at the launch pad. The Mercury astronauts had a semi truck with a modified trailer, which also served as a suit-up room. The two-man Gemini crews used a box van, while the Apollo astronauts rode aboard a modified Clark-Cortez motorhome.For most of the 30-year space shuttle program, including the missions that featured Wilmore and Williams as crew members, NASA chose an Airstream Excella motorhome. With its chrome exterior and simple red, white and blue stripe livery, the original Astrovan became iconic.So it seemed somewhat natural that Boeing would pick Airstream to develop the Astrovan II.”Airstream is truly proud to continue supporting adventures beyond our planet — we couldn’t have a better partner than Boeing,” said Bob Wheeler, the CEO and president of Airstream, in a 2019 interview with collectSPACE when the Astrovan II was shown to the public. “The Boeing crew will go from an Airstream to a rocket to the space station, and we couldn’t be more excited to be one leg of that journey into orbit.”the gray interior of a large van, showing six bucket seatsThough sharing a similar name and same manufacturer, the new Astrovan has little in common with its predecessor, as is immediately apparent from the exterior. Not only is it a different form factor, but the Astrovan II is wrapped in bold graphics that depict the Starliner in Earth orbit.Inside, the eight-seat van has amenities that were not even an option for the 1983 original.”It’s got cushy seats and, of course, it’s got a big video screen in the back,” said Wilmore, the commander of the upcoming Starliner mission, which is called Crew Flight Test.The flatscreen, high-definition television is for the crew’s e …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
