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Boeing's performance could be on par with NASA's as it

Feb. 2, 2017 by Katherine Berry

Boeing's performance could be on par with NASA's as it attempts to achieve the first manned mission to orbit a planet, according to the report.

The report also points out that Boeing has been working on the rocket since late 2012, when it launched a manned Mars mission with NASA astronauts—and a manned mission called Dawn, which began with a $50 million budget deal.

"The critical components that are critical to this mission are all in place for the Dawn spacecraft and its mission to Mars," the report says.

The report also cites Boeing's new-found reliability, the fact that new materials are being brought to test in orbit, and the fact that there is almost never an accident during testing. (Boeing could be blamed for its failure to successfully launch the Dawn spacecraft in August, although its failures could also be due to design errors, according to the report.)

Boeing's continued use of the SLS has been a problem that has plagued the company's development, with some of the most critical parts of the rocket's design being the upper stage and the rocket's thrusters.

"The SLS core stage may have been underdeveloped compared to other systems, especially those from NASA, or even smaller, systems in NASA's other rocket launches, such as the Falcon 9 test payloads," the report states. "The SLS core stages had a design quality that was far better than others, and the reliability of the SLS would be much improved if some of these parts were to be replaced or repaired. This is a major component of the SLS mission, as it is the rocket that will need to be reworked and upgraded for the SLS mission. It does not take major cost savings to reduce the cost of these components."