AST SpaceMobile Announces Successful Orbital Launch of BlueBird 6, the Largest Commercial Communications Array Ever Deployed in Low Earth Orbit

At nearly 2,400 square feet, BlueBird 6 is over three times the size and 10x the capacity of AST SpaceMobile’s six satellites currently in orbit.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (“AST SpaceMobile”) (NASDAQ: ASTS), the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government applications, announced the successful orbital launch of BlueBird 6.

The BlueBird 6 mission lifted off at 10:25 p.m. EST on December 23 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India. BlueBird 6 becomes now the largest commercial communications array ever deployed in low Earth orbit, spanning nearly 2,400 square feet, three times larger than AST SpaceMobile’s previous record-breaking BlueBirds 1-5, engineered to deliver commercial and government applications, including high-speed 4G and 5G space-based cellular broadband directly to standard, unmodified smartphones, and government applications that benefit from the power, size, and patented technology of AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird spacecrafts.

“BlueBird 6 is a breakthrough moment for AST SpaceMobile,” said Abel Avellan, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of AST SpaceMobile. “This launch validates years of U.S. innovation and American manufacturing, executed by our team and marks the transition to scaled deployment. With BlueBird 6 now in orbit, we are firmly on the path to delivering true space-based cellular broadband directly to everyday smartphones, at a global scale.”

Today’s successful launch kicks off our next phase of execution and keeps us on track to launch 45–60 satellites by the end of 2026, with launches planned every one or two months on average.

BlueBird 6 was assembled, integrated, and tested at AST SpaceMobile’s manufacturing facilities in Midland, Texas. AST SpaceMobile operates nearly 500,000 square feet of manufacturing and operations facilities worldwide, supported by a workforce of more than 1,800 employees and a technology platform backed by over 3,800 patents and patent-pending claims.

AST SpaceMobile has agreements with over 50 mobile network operators globally with nearly 3 billion subscribers combined and strategic partnerships with AT&T, Verizon, Vodafone, Rakuten, Google, American Tower, Bell and stc Group.