The mission, designated New Glenn-3 (NG-3), is scheduled for no earlier than late February and will launch from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The flight will deploy AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite, part of the company’s next-generation Block 2 constellation.
AST SpaceMobile selected Blue Origin’s heavy-lift New Glenn rocket in November 2024 as part of its broader launch campaign to build a global cellular broadband network.
Once operational, the BlueBird constellation is intended to support both commercial and government telecommunications, allowing standard smartphones to remain connected as users move between terrestrial mobile networks and space-based coverage.
“We’re proud to have AST SpaceMobile flying with us on NG-3,” Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp said. “Customers need a reliable and cost-effective launch system, and New Glenn has been designed from the outset to meet those requirements.”
The upcoming mission follows the successful New Glenn-2 flight, which saw the recovery and landing of the booster dubbed “Never tell me the odds”. That same booster is now being refurbished and will be reused for the NG-3 launch.
BlueBird 7 is the second satellite in AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation rollout and is identical to BlueBird 6. With a communications array spanning almost 2,400 square feet, it is the largest commercial communications satellite operating in low-Earth orbit, and around three-and-a-half times larger than the company’s earlier BlueBird spacecraft.
AST SpaceMobile said the satellite’s scale and design, supported by more than 3,800 patents and patent applications, will enable peak data rates of up to 120 Mbps for voice, data and streaming services delivered directly from space.
“This launch moves us closer to delivering space-based cellular broadband to everyday smartphones as we work towards commercial service in 2026,” AST SpaceMobile president Scott Wisniewski said. “BlueBird 7 represents a major step towards providing a new layer of connectivity for consumers, enterprises and government users around the world.”
New Glenn’s seven-metre payload fairing allows it to carry up to eight Block 2 BlueBird satellites on a single mission, offering roughly twice the payload volume of five-metre class commercial launch vehicles.
AST SpaceMobile plans to use multiple launch providers as it accelerates constellation deployment, targeting one orbital launch every one to two months during 2026 and aiming to place between 45 and 60 satellites into orbit by the end of that year.
AST SpaceMobile is developing what it describes as the world’s first space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by standard 4G and 5G smartphones, without requiring any modifications to user devices.
The company is highly vertically integrated, with around 95 per cent of its manufacturing conducted in the United States. It operates nearly 500,000 square feet of manufacturing and operations facilities in Texas and employs close to 1,800 staff.
The company also plans to invite members of its shareholder community to attend the BlueBird 7 launch in person, with further details to be released closer to the flight.
The public will be able to watch the launch live via AST SpaceMobile’s YouTube channel, with the exact timing subject to change depending on vehicle readiness, weather and other operational factors.