AST SpaceMobile plans Blacklift rocket for Bluebird satellite launches

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.