Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket launch encountered an anomaly, AST SpaceMobile (ASTS.US) satellite failed to enter orbit, stock price fell 14% before market opening.

Note that AST SpaceMobile (ASTS.US) stock price fell 14% in pre-market trading on Monday as Blue Origin, owned by Bezos, failed to put the satellites manufactured by the company into the planned orbit with the "New Glenn" rocket. Blue Origin carried out the third mission of the "New Glenn" rocket on Sunday and successfully reused the booster for the first time, but the payload did not reach the planned orbit. In a post on the X platform, Blue Origin stated that although the satellite has separated from the second stage of the "New Glenn" rocket, it entered a "non-nominal orbit". Regarding the launch, AST SpaceMobile stated, "Due to the orbit being too low, the satellite will undergo a deorbit process as it cannot maintain operation with on-board propulsion technology." The cost of the satellite is expected to be recovered through the company's insurance policy. The "BlueBird 7" was initially supposed to become the eighth satellite deployed by AST SpaceMobile in low Earth orbit, and one of the many satellites planned to build the company's space-based cellular broadband network. Currently, the company is in production up to "BlueBird 32", with "BlueBird 8" to "10" expected to be ready for shipment in about 30 days. AST SpaceMobile still plans to have an average of one to two orbital launches every month during 2026, supported by agreements with multiple launch providers; the company still targets to have around 45 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026. Meanwhile, this setback may complicate Blue Origin's efforts to establish the "New Glenn" as a strong competitor to SpaceX's "Falcon 9". The heavy-lift rocket has faced delays for years and its launch cadence has been slower than expected.