Boeing Astronaut Capsule Faces Key Test on Trip to Space Station

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine speaks at a briefing as Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana, astronauts Josh Cassada, Suni Williams, Nicole Mann, Chris Ferguson Mike Fincke and NASA Deputy Administrator James Morhard stand behind at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., Dec. 19, 2019. Thom Baur/Reuters

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—Boeing Co. is set to launch its new astronaut capsule on Dec. 20 on its first unmanned journey to the International Space Station, a milestone test for the U.S. aerospace firm that is vying with SpaceX to revive NASA’s human spaceflight capabilities.

Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, a cone-shaped pod capable of carrying up to seven astronauts, will blast off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral around 6:36 a.m. atop an Atlas V rocket from Boeing-Lockheed Martin Corp.’s United Launch Alliance.