Blue Origin grounds New Glenn after satellite loss

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket is grounded after the vehicle’s third flight on April 19 left AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite in an orbit too low to operate. The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a mishap investigation on April 20 and said Blue Origin must win agency approval of its final report and corrective actions before the heavy-lift launcher can return to flight. The April 19 mission, known as NG-3, lifted off from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Blue Origin had billed the flight as a step forward for New Glenn reuse because it used the first-stage booster “Never Tell Me The Odds,” which had flown and landed on the program’s second mission in November 2025. The first stage performed as planned and landed on Blue Origin’s downrange platform, but the upper stage missed its main job. (usnews.com) AST SpaceMobile said BlueBird 7 separated and powered on, yet the altitude was too low to sustain operations and the satellite would de-orbit. ### Which part of the mission failed after the booster landing succeeded? (blueorigin.com) Dave Limp, Blue Origin’s chief executive, said on April 20 that early data suggested one of the two BE-3U engines on New Glenn’s upper stage “didn’t produce sufficient thrust to reach our target orbit.” Reuters reported that the FAA’s order referred to a mishap during the rocket’s “second-stage flight sequence.” (usnews.com) Blue Origin’s mission profile for NG-3 said the two BE-3U engines were supposed to propel the second stage into space before deploying BlueBird 7 into low Earth orbit. Instead, the payload was released at an insufficient altitude. ### What exactly happened to BlueBird 7? AST SpaceMobile said on April 19 that BlueBird 7 had been placed into a “lower than planned orbit” by the launch vehicle’s upper stage. (usnews.com) The company said the satellite separated from the rocket and powered on, but could not sustain operations with its onboard thruster technology and would de-orbit. (blueorigin.com) Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard-Smithsonian astrophysicist who tracks space objects for the American Astronomical Society, said BlueBird 7 re-entered the atmosphere on April 20, according to Reuters. ### Why is New Glenn grounded now? The FAA said on April 20 that Blue Origin must conduct a mishap inquiry and obtain agency approval of the final report and any corrective actions before New Glenn can resume flying. (businesswire.com) Reuters reported that the regulator must determine no system, process or procedure related to the mishap poses a public safety hazard. (usnews.com) Groundings after launch failures are standard in U.S. commercial spaceflight oversight. In this case, the trigger was the upper-stage malfunction, not the booster recovery, which Blue Origin completed successfully. ### How big a setback is this for AST SpaceMobile’s launch plan? AST SpaceMobile said the cost of BlueBird 7 is expected to be recovered under insurance. (usnews.com) The company also said it remains in production through BlueBird 32, with BlueBird 8, 9 and 10 expected to be ready to ship in about 30 days. The Midland, Texas-based company said it still expects an orbital launch every one to two months on average during 2026, supported by agreements with multiple launch providers, and continues to target about 45 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026. (businesswire.com) ### What was Blue Origin trying to prove on this flight? Blue Origin said before launch that NG-3 would carry BlueBird 7 to low Earth orbit and mark the return of the first-stage booster “Never Tell Me The Odds.” The company’s missions page says New Glenn’s second mission in November 2025 successfully deployed NASA’s ESCAPADE twin spacecraft into the designated loiter orbit and landed the first stage on Jacklyn in the Atlantic Ocean. (businesswire.com) The next formal step is the FAA-overseen mishap investigation led by Blue Origin. Until that review is completed and the agency accepts the company’s corrective actions, New Glenn remains grounded. (usnews.com) (blueorigin.com)