Boeing’s first astronaut launch called off due to faulty valve

Countdown halted hours before liftoff in latest delay for long-planned flight, with no word on next attempt

Boeing called off its first astronaut launch because of a valve problem on its rocket on Monday night.

Two Nasa test pilots had just strapped into Boeing’s Starliner capsule when the countdown was halted, just two hours before the planned liftoff. A United Launch Alliance engineer, Dillon Rice, said the issue involved an oxygen relief valve on the upper stage of the company’s Atlas rocket.