AST SpaceMobile announces development of its own Blacklift rocket

According to the company, Blacklift will carry up to 20 tons of payload to low Earth orbit, which corresponds to up to five BlueBird spacecraft at a time. The first stage is planned to be equipped with Miranda engines, and the upper stage with Vira engines, both developed by Firefly Aerospace. They have not yet been flight-tested; Miranda has already completed over 175 hot-fire tests with a total duration of more than 4,200 seconds.

As 3DNews reports citing Space, Firefly will supply engines for the first three rockets and provide engineering support for three years, after which AST SpaceMobile intends to manufacture them itself under license at a new plant in the United States. A total of $250 million is allocated for engines and another $250 million for support, while the license is valued at approximately $800 million, of which $400 million will be paid in cash and the remainder in shares. In total, the deal will cost about $1.3 billion.

Chief Executive Officer Abel Avellan said that AST SpaceMobile no longer wants to rely on third-party launch providers, and having its own carrier rocket will give it access to government contracts, including radar, secure communications, and the internet of things. At the same time, the services of third-party operators will remain: under existing contracts, they will launch more than 100 BlueBird satellites in 2027–2028. Currently, the company has 13 spacecraft in orbit, although 45 had been planned by the end of the year.

According to iXBT.com, the decision sparked skepticism among investors, and the company's shares dropped from a May peak of $133 to $30 amid mounting competition from SpaceX.