Astronauts Will Watch Top Gun: Maverick On Their Way To Boeing's Starliner Launchpad

After years of delays, it seems that Boeing's Starliner capsule is finally ready for launch at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Liftoff is scheduled for 7:34 PM PT / 10:34 PM ET--the moment Earth's rotation will position the launchpad into alignment with the International Space Station's (ISS) orbit. But before Boeing's crew hits the launch pad, they'll be experiencing one of Earth's favorite pastimes: Watching movies. Specifically, watching Top Gun: Maverick.

While astronauts traveling to the ISS va SpaceX's Dragon capsule typically reach the launchpad while riding in a Tesla, Boeing's crew will get there via a "more traditional astrovan" equipped with a video screen that will play Top Gun: Maverick. It's likely that the highly rated film was chosen by the crew themselves.

If successful, this launch will carry mission commander Barry "Butch" Wilmore and co-pilot Sunita Williams on a test-drive of the Starliner capsule--its first piloted flight. Both Williams and Wilmore are former Navy test pilots and experienced astronauts, with a combined four spaceflights, 11 spacewalks, and 500 days spent in orbit between them, along with trips to space via the now-defunct Space Shuttle Program and Russia's Soyuz, a sort of space-taxi that functioned as the main mode of transport to the ISS before the introduction of SpaceX's Dragon capsule, which flew its first crewed flight in May 2020. If all goes as planned, the Starliner--likely named after Boeing's luxury 787 Dreamliner aircraft--will join the Soyuz and Dragon as a new way to taxi astronauts to and from the ISS. Unlike SpaceX's Dragon, which splashes into the sea upon returning to Earth, the Starliner uses special airbags to cushion the blow as the craft lands on the ground.

Assuming all goes well, and the launch isn't delayed again due to weather or technical issues, this trip to the stars will be a historic moment for Boeing. But it comes at a moment where the company itself is under a high amount of scrutiny from both safety officials and the public after a door plug on one of Boeing's 737 MAX 9 planes became dislodged mid-takeoff while the plane was 15,000 feet off the ground, requiring Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 to make an emergency landing on January 5. No one was injured, but 737 MAX 9's around the world were grounded for inspection.

Even worse, two Boeing whistleblowers have died under questionable circumstances over the last two months. The first, 62-year-old John Barnett, who worked for Boeing for 32 years, was found dead of a gunshot wound to the head on March 9, with his death ruled a suicide. Then, on April 30th, 45-year-old Joshua Dean--a former quality auditor at Spirit AeroSystems, where Boeing's fuselage sections are assembled--died from a mysterious infection that progressed rapidly. At least 10 more whistleblowers are set to testify in front of the Senate regarding issues with Boeing's workplace safety culture.