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Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has won a partial contract to launch second-generation satellites for AST SpaceMobile on its New Glenn rocket. Earlier today, AST SpaceMobile announced launch contracts for 2025 and 2026, using SpaceX and New Glenn rockets to build its new satellite constellation. The company also reported its third-quarter earnings, and during the call, CEO Abel Avellan added that the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will also provide launch services for his company. SpaceX launched AST’s first-generation BlueBird satellite with a Falcon 9 in September after launching the larger BlueWalker 3 satellite in 2022.

Blue Origin Confirms New Glenn Rocket Will Launch in 2024

The launch contract announced by AST SpaceMobile today is for the company’s BlueBird Block 2 satellite. These satellites are designed to create a space-based mobile broadband network that can be used by government agencies and the public. The network is designed to rely on regular cell towers and satellites, and Block 2 satellites aim to support transfer speeds of up to 120 Mbps, according to AST.

Although SpaceX is the sole provider of launch services for AST’s BlueBird 1 and BlueWalker 3 satellites, the company also contracted with Blue Origin for the Block 2 spacecraft. As part of the release, AST said that the company will use Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket alongside with “existing launch vehicles” to build the BlueBird Block 2 satellite constellation.

AST’s 2022 contract with SpaceX has been heavily edited and does not mention price per launch or milestone payments. This time, while AST’s press release didn’t say which ‘existing’ vehicles it would rely on, the company’s third-quarter earnings call with analysts was more revealing.

During the event, CEO Abel Avellan said that his company announced “new launch services agreements with Blue Origin and SpaceX.” The agreement will launch 60 BlueBird Block 2 satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida between 2025 and 2026. Avellan was impressed with New Glenn’s large fairing, which, he said, will be capable of “launches up to 8 of the largest Block 2 satellites ever.”

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched five BlueBird Block 1 satellites in September, with each satellite weighing 1,500 kilograms and having a phased array antenna covering 64 square meters. AST too”planning our next launch with ISRO,” the Indian space agency added Avellan. ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) launched AST’s BlueWalker 1 satellite in 2019 for the company’s first satellite launch.

Regarding Blue Origin, the company today reiterated that New Glenn is on track for its first launch in 2024. With less than two months left before the year ends, the company is busy preparing its rocket in Florida. The aircraft mated New Glenn’s first and second stages earlier this week as part of preparations for the rocket’s first integrated hot fire test. If this test is successful, then Blue Origin will be confident to proceed with the launch after potentially conducting several tests before attempting to launch and then land the first stage rocket booster.