Chennai, Dec 13 (UNI) Nasdaq-listed cellular broadband company AST SpaceMobile Inc.’s December 15 launch of its 6.5-ton BlueBird 6 satellite aboard India’s LVM3 rocket has been postponed, it is reliably learnt.
The company had earlier announced that its second-generation BlueBird satellite would be launched into low Earth orbit (LEO) on December 15, 2025.
While AST SpaceMobile and senior officials at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) did not respond to queries, it is reliably learnt that the scheduled launch has been deferred.
The revised launch date has not been announced but is expected to take place after December 20, 2025.
At 6.5 tons, BlueBird 6 will be the heaviest satellite ever placed into LEO by the LVM3, which currently boasts a 100 percent launch success rate.
BlueBird 6 marks the debut of AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation satellite fleet. Once deployed, it will feature the largest commercial phased array in LEO, spanning nearly 2,400 sq ft — a 3.5× increase over its predecessors, BlueBirds 1–5 — and delivering 10× more data capacity, the company said.
AST SpaceMobile is developing what it calls the world’s first and only space-based cellular broadband network designed to connect directly to everyday smartphones for commercial and government users.
“Our next-generation satellites will soon enable ubiquitous cellular broadband coverage direct to everyday smartphones from space,” Abel Avellan, Founder, Chairman and CEO of AST SpaceMobile had said earlier.
“As an American company, we are proud to demonstrate US leadership in space innovation while pioneering the next era of global connectivity,” Avellan said.
The company is accelerating production, with hardware equivalent to 40 satellites expected to be completed by early 2026. It anticipates five orbital launches by the end of Q1 2026, with launches spaced one to two months apart, aiming for 45–60 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026 to enable continuous coverage across the US and select markets.
AST SpaceMobile’s rapid expansion is supported by nearly 500,000 sq ft of manufacturing and operations facilities worldwide, about 400,000 sq ft of which are in the US and a global workforce of nearly 1,800 employees, most based in the United States.
The BlueBird 6 launch contract was arranged through NewSpace India Ltd, the commercial arm of India’s Department of Space.
AST SpaceMobile will become the second satellite broadband customer to fly on LVM3, after Eutelsat OneWeb, which launched 72 satellites using two LVM3 missions in 2022 and 2023.
India’s LVM3 is a three-stage heavy-lift vehicle weighing about 642 tons and standing 43.5 meters tall. It can carry approximately 4 tons to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and 10 tons to LEO, with ISRO actively working to raise its GTO capacity to 5 tons.
India’s LVM3 is a three-stage heavy-lift launch vehicle weighing about 642 tons and standing 43.5 metres tall. It can carry approximately 4 tons to geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) and about 10 tons to LEO, with ISRO actively working to increase its GTO capacity to 5 tons.
US Satellite ‘BlueBird 6’ launch by India’s LVM3 rocket delayed
