The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3) on Wednesday (24 Dec) successfully placed the BlueBird Block-2 satellite in low earth orbit.
At 8.55 a.m., the LVM3 lifted off from the second launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota and 15 minutes later placed the satellite in the intended orbit.
ISRO accomplished two milestones with this mission as it was able to deploy the largest commercial communications satellite in low earth orbit, and also the BlueBird Block-2 satellite became the heaviest payload (6,100kg) to be launched by LVM3 from Indian soil.
ISRO chairman V. Narayanan declared the mission a success.
Commenting on the LVM3-M6 rocket launch, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described it as a significant stride in India’s space sector.
“The successful LVM3-M6 launch, placing the heaviest satellite ever launched from Indian soil, the spacecraft of USA, BlueBird Block-2, into its intended orbit, marks a proud milestone in India’s space journey. It strengthens India’s heavy-lift launch capability and reinforces our growing role in the global commercial launch market. This is also reflective of our efforts towards an Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Congratulations to our hardworking space scientists and engineers. India continues to soar higher in the world of space,” PM Modi said in a post on ‘X’.
The BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite is developed by AST SpaceMobile, USA, and is part of a next-generation BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite, designed to provide space-based cellular broadband connectivity directly to standard mobile smartphones.
“BlueBird block-2 mission is part of a global LEO constellation to provide direct-to-mobile connectivity through satellite . This constellation will enable 4G and 5G voice and video calls, texts, streaming, and data for everyone, everywhere, at all times. It features a 223m² phased array, making it the largest commercial communications satellite ever deployed into low Earth orbit,” ISRO said.
This was the sixth operational flight of LVM3 and third dedicated commercial mission.
“In its earlier missions, LVM3 successfully launched Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3, and two OneWeb missions carrying 72 satellites. The previous launch of LVM3 was the LVM3-M5/CMS-03 mission which was successfully accomplished on November 2, 2025,” ISRO said. (Newswire/ The Hindu)