# AST SpaceMobile plans Blacklift rocket for Bluebird satellite launches

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/building-a-rocket-is-hard-ast-spacemobile-thinks-its-simple/
- Published: 2026-11-12T18:28:22+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-12T18:48:46+00:00
- Original publisher: Ars Technica
- Original article: https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/11/building-a-rocket-is-hard-ast-spacemobile-thinks-its-simple/
- Topics: Space, Technology

## Key points

- AST says Blacklift will launch five Bluebirds at a time.
- The company is targeting a first launch in 2028.
- Engine readiness, development challenges and funding raise questions.

## Summary

AST SpaceMobile says it will develop the Blacklift rocket to launch its Bluebird satellites, which provide direct-to-mobile connectivity from low Earth orbit. The company is struggling to secure enough launches for its satellites, so it sees building a rocket as a way to meet demand and control access to orbit.

Chief executive Abel Avellan says Blacklift will carry five satellites, lift 20 metric tonnes and have a reusable first stage, with launches twice a month from Virginia’s Wallops Flight Facility. AST is targeting a first launch in 2028 and has committed $1.3 billion to Firefly Aerospace for engines and a licence to make more. But the Miranda engine has not completed qualification testing, little is publicly known about the upper-stage engine, and rocket development involves many challenges beyond engines; the article also says AST has not detailed how it will finance the wider programme.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.