Without Blue Origin Launches AST SpaceMobile Will Not Have Usable Service In 2026…

Blue Origins New Glenn’s New Glenn-3 (NG-3) will carry AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation Block 2 BlueBird satellite to low Earth orbit. The launch is scheduled for no earlier than late February from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
AST SpaceMobile cannot provide full continuous service until ~45-60 satellites are in orbit (targeting end-2026), requiring a few months for positioning and testing post-launch. Continuous service by late 2026 in the US, Europe, Japan, and other markets, supporting voice/video calls, texting, and streaming at 120 Mbps per cell for millions of daily connections.

Full global rollout needs 90+ satellites.
Blue Origin prioritizes Amazon satellites. Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is a mega constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit that will offer broadband internet access, this constellation will be managed by Kuiper Systems LLC, a subsidiary of Amazon. This constellation is planned to be composed of 3,276 satellites. The satellites are projected to be placed in 98 orbital planes in three orbital layers, one at 590 km, 610 km and 630 km altitude.

61 satellites will be carried on each New Glenn launch.
Blue Origin is trying to reuse a booster. The GS1-SN002 will try have a 2nd flight. It was first flow 106 days prior IF the late February launch is not delayed.
AST has five orbital launches anticipated by the end of Q1 2026.
Tim Farrar, satellite analyst and president at TMF Associates, has been skeptical for some time about AST SpaceMobile meeting its ambitious goal of 45 to 60 satellites by the end of 2026, given it has a history of delays and missing targets.

He does not expect AST to deliver a continuous service across the US this year. Further, he questions how many people will be willing to pay for D2D services.

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