Blue Origin’s New Glenn heavy-lift launch vehicle failed to deliver its primary payload to the designated orbit during its third mission on April 20, 2026. The rocket, carrying AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite, launched from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 10:14 AM EDT. While the first stage performed as expected, an anomaly during the second-stage ignition sequence resulted in a premature engine shutdown, leaving the satellite in a non-sustainable low-Earth trajectory.
Technical telemetry indicates that the seven BE-4 engines powering the New Glenn first stage completed their 180-second burn and successfully separated. However, the upper stage, powered by two BE-3U vacuum-optimized engines, experienced a malfunction approximately 45 seconds into its planned six-minute burn. Preliminary data suggests a fuel pressure drop in the upper stage’s liquid hydrogen system. As a result, the BlueBird 7 satellite was deployed at a perigee of 180 kilometers, far short of the intended 500-kilometer circular orbit.
AST SpaceMobile confirmed that ground controllers established brief contact with BlueBird 7 following deployment. However, due to the high atmospheric drag at the 180-kilometer altitude, the satellite’s onboard propulsion system was unable to raise the orbit to a stable level. The company officially declared the satellite a total loss at 4:30 PM EDT, noting that the asset had re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere over the South Pacific. BlueBird 7 was one of the larger Block 2 satellites in AST SpaceMobile’s constellation, featuring a 693-square-foot phased array antenna designed for direct-to-cell 5G connectivity.
In a statement released shortly after the incident, Blue Origin’s Chief Technology Officer stated that the company has initiated a formal investigation into the upper stage performance. This mission marked the third flight of the New Glenn system and its first major technical failure following two successful qualification flights in late 2025 and early 2026. The failure is expected to delay the upcoming launch of the BlueBird 8 through 12 satellites, which were scheduled for deployment on New Glenn later this year.
Following the confirmation of the mission failure and the loss of the BlueBird 7 satellite, shares of AST SpaceMobile experienced a sharp decline in afternoon trading. The company stated it is working with its insurance providers to recover the value of the lost hardware, though the timeline for a replacement launch remains uncertain. Blue Origin has grounded the remaining New Glenn fleet pending the results of the anomaly investigation board.