LOS ANGELES, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is scheduled to depart the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday, and return to Earth with a desert landing in the western part of the United States.

The spacecraft was launched to the ISS from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida last Thursday, a critical uncrewed test flight for Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

The spacecraft docked to the forward port of the space station's Harmony module on Friday.

For the flight test, Starliner carried about 500 pounds of NASA cargo and crew supplies and more than 300 pounds of Boeing cargo to the ISS.

The spacecraft will return with more than 600 pounds of cargo, including Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System reusable tanks that provide breathable air to station crew members, according to NASA. The tanks will be refurbished on Earth and sent back to the station on a future flight.

The mission, dubbed as Boeing Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2), will provide valuable data toward NASA certifying Boeing's crew transportation system for regular flights with astronauts to and from the space station, said NASA.

Following certification, NASA missions aboard Starliner will carry up to four crew members to the station, enabling the continued expansion of the crew and increasing the amount of science and research that can be performed aboard the orbiting laboratory, according to NASA.