{"id":919919,"date":"2026-07-15T01:17:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T06:17:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/15\/ast-spacemobile-sees-new-glenn-setback-delaying-initial-commercial-service-into-2027\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T01:17:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T06:17:19","slug":"ast-spacemobile-sees-new-glenn-setback-delaying-initial-commercial-service-into-2027","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/15\/ast-spacemobile-sees-new-glenn-setback-delaying-initial-commercial-service-into-2027\/","title":{"rendered":"AST SpaceMobile sees New Glenn setback delaying initial commercial service into 2027"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An artistic rendering of an AST SpaceMobile BlueBird satellite in low Earth orbit. Credit:<\/span> AST SpaceMobile<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 AST SpaceMobile expects Blue Origin\u2019s recent launchpad explosion will delay its direct-to-smartphone constellation by three to six months, investment bank William Blair said in an equity research note, pushing initial commercial services into the first half of 2027.<\/p>\n

William Blair said Scott Wisniewski, AST SpaceMobile\u2019s chief strategy officer, made the estimate June 2 during the bank\u2019s annual growth stock conference in Chicago.<\/p>\n

Before the loss of a New Glenn rocket in a static-fire test May 28, AST SpaceMobile had aimed to start early services at the end of 2026 with at least 45 satellites in low Earth orbit, helping anchor customers such as AT&T and Verizon in the United States plug terrestrial service gaps.<\/p>\n

The Texas-based venture had retained that goal even after the loss of its seventh BlueBird satellite<\/a> on a New Glenn launch April 19.<\/p>\n

While AST SpaceMobile was planning to rely heavily on New Glenn, Wisniewski reaffirmed \u201cit has a handful of launches over the remainder of the year with launch providers other than Blue Origin,\u201d William Blair analyst Louie DiPalma wrote.<\/p>\n

Alongside contracts with SpaceX, Wisniewski said last month that the company has \u201ca handful of SpaceX-equivalent launches,\u201d with United Launch Alliance\u2019s Vulcan singled out as a viable option<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In addition to New Glenn, previous BlueBirds have flown with SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 and India\u2019s LVM3.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, AST SpaceMobile disclosed it had signed an agreement with a new heavy launch vehicle to be on standby in its manifest, without providing details.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur strategy has always been to have many launch providers, and I would put ULA in that category,\u201d Wisniewski said during AST SpaceMobile\u2019s most recent earnings call May 11.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been developing other heavy launch providers for some time, and we will have more updates as appropriate. But right now, we plan to use Blue Origin and SpaceX and equivalents to the max.\u201d<\/p>\n

AST SpaceMobile referred SpaceNews to a statement it released soon after the launchpad incident last week, stating that none of the missions planned for the next few months are scheduled with Blue Origin.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur satellites are designed to be launcher-agnostic, and we have agreements in place with multiple launch providers, giving us flexibility across our launch program,\u201d the operator said.<\/p>\n

Dave Limp, Blue Origin\u2019s CEO, said June 1 that damage to the pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida, is not as bad as feared<\/a> and New Glenn could return to flight before the end of the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat said, we view a return to service from this specific pad as unlikely in the near term,\u201d DiPalma wrote in the research note, \u201cand expect Blue Origin may need to rely on third-party launch infrastructure for upcoming missions.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJason Rainbow writes about satellite telecom, finance and commercial markets for SpaceNews. He has spent more than a decade covering the global space industry as a business journalist. Previously, he was Group Editor-in-Chief for Finance Information Group,…\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore by Jason Rainbow\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n