Blue Origin New Glenn failure

Blue Origin’s New Glenn failed to deliver AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 to its planned orbit on April 19, leaving the satellite too low to operate. (blueorigin.com) (satellitetoday.com) The NG-3 mission lifted off from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 7:25 a.m. Eastern, carrying BlueBird 7 on New Glenn’s third flight. (blueorigin.com) (satellitetoday.com) Blue Origin recovered the first-stage booster, “Never Tell Me The Odds,” on its drone ship Jacklyn in the Atlantic, marking the company’s first reuse of an orbital-class booster. (blueorigin.com) (arstechnica.com) The problem came later, on the rocket’s upper stage, which is the part that performs the final orbital insertion burn after the booster falls away. Blue Origin chief executive Dave Limp said one of the two BE-3U engines did not produce enough thrust on the second burn. (satellitetoday.com) (space.com) AST SpaceMobile said BlueBird 7 separated and powered on, but the orbit was too low for the satellite’s onboard thrusters to raise it into a usable path. The company said the spacecraft will be de-orbited. (satellitetoday.com) (space.com) BlueBird 7 was meant to expand AST SpaceMobile’s direct-to-smartphone broadband network and support an initial service rollout in 2026. AST says its next-generation BlueBird campaign is targeting 45 to 60 satellites by the end of 2026. (blueorigin.com) (ast-science.com) The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a mishap investigation after the flight, which means New Glenn cannot fly again until the agency accepts Blue Origin’s findings and any corrective actions. (techcrunch.com) (space.com) The setback lands at a sensitive time for Blue Origin’s moon business. NASA selected Blue Origin in 2023 to develop the Blue Moon human landing system for Artemis V, with a contract value of $3.4 billion. (nasa.gov) NASA also picked Blue Origin in September 2025 to deliver the VIPER rover to the lunar south pole on a Blue Moon Mark 1 robotic lander, with a task order worth up to $190 million. NASA said that delivery is targeted for late 2027. (nasa.gov) For now, New Glenn has both a win and a failure on the same flight: a booster came home intact, and a customer payload did not reach a usable orbit. The next test is no longer the next launch, but the investigation. (arstechnica.com) (techcrunch.com)