Blue Origin Targeting April 16 For New Glenn Flight 3

Credit: Blue Origin

Blue Origin is working toward an April 16 launch of its New Glenn rocket, which will carry AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite into low Earth orbit.

Quelle: Blue Origin

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Update:

Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket raised for third Cape Canaveral launch

Blue Origin's giant New Glenn rocket is standing tall on the Cape Canaveral launch pad once again in preparation for the new rocket's third flight.

While it has been teased that a launch is upcoming, Blue Origin has yet to release an official launch date. According to a Federal Aviation Administration advisory and the Space Coast Office of Tourism, the liftoff is set for now no earlier than 6:45 a.m. Friday, April 17 from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The rocket is expected to undergo a hot fire test of its engines in the coming days before an official target liftoff date is announced. The payload, an AST SpaceMobile next-generation Block 2 BlueBird satellite, is already integrated atop the rocket.

First launched in January 2025, this liftoff will mark only the third flightof this particular rocket. As Blue Origin's entry into the orbital payload marketplace, the rocket is appropriately named for the first American in orbit, John Glenn.

Founded by Jeff Bezos, the company is a direct competitor to Space, which launches the most common rocket out of Florida, the Falcon 9.

New Glenn is a large rocket

Visible from Brevard County beaches, New Glenn may not look big on the launch pad but it is actually one of the largest rockets in history.

At 321-feet-tall, New Glenn is just a foot shorter than NASA's SLS (Space Launch System) moon rocket, which recently launched the Artemis II mission.

Going back in history, the only other rocket that would tower over New Glenn would have been the 363-foot-tall Saturn V rocket which sent Apollo astronauts to the moon.

However, the largest rocket of all time is SpaceX's 403-foot-tall Starship, which may launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center Pad 39A in the coming year, pending the completion of the upcoming test flight out of Texas.

For context, SpaceX's Falcon 9 stands only 230-feet-tall.

New Glenn will launch Artemis lunar lander

Blue Origin is tapped by NASA to provide one of two lunar lander options for future NASA Artemis moon landings. New Glenn is poised to launch the Blue Origin's uncrewed Blue Moon Mark 1 lander sometime this year, with the Blue Moon Mark 2 crewed lander to follow.

Currently, both Blue Origin's Mark II and SpaceX's Starship Human Landing System (HLS) are competing to get their lunar landers ready for the 2027 Artemis III mission, which will see the Orion spacecraft dock with one or both of the landers in low Earth orbit. This mission will serve as a test before one of the landers docks with the Orion spacecraft in lunar orbit during the Artemis IV mission, returning astronauts to the moon's surface.

New Glenn aims to land on platform after liftoff

During the last launch of this rocket in November 2025, Blue Origin accomplished something SpaceX has successfully done with its Falcon 9 rocket over the past decade —land its first stage booster on a platform out at sea.

Blue Origin now aims to do it again. This is part of the long term goal of bringing down the cost of launching orbital missions. The reused 188-foot-tall first stage, named "Never Tell Me the Odds", will launch for a second time during this flight.

That platform is known as Jacklyn, named for Bezos’ mother. Jacklyn can be seen when docked in Port Canaveral — and as seen during the Nov. 2025 landing, draws a crowd when it brings back a prize.

Blue Origin aims to eventually launch New Glenn more frequently. In 2025, the company stated plans to eventually launch up to 12 times per year from Cape Canaveral.

Quelle: Florida Today

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Update: 17.04.2026

New Glenn’s Third Mission Slated for April 19

NG-3 mission patch

Blue Origin announced the launch date for New Glenn's third mission, slated to launch no earlier than Sunday, April 19, 2026, from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The launch window will be open from 6:45 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. EDT / 10:45 – 12:45 UTC. Live launch coverage on BlueOrigin.com will start 30 minutes prior to launch.

The mission will carry AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird 7 satellite to low Earth orbit. BlueBird 7 will expand direct-to-smartphone broadband network capacity and help enable initial service rollout in 2026.

This mission will feature the return of New Glenn's first-stage booster, Never Tell Me The Odds, which successfully launched and landed on the program's second mission last November.

Quelle: Blue Origin

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Update: 19.04.2026

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket launches telecommunications satellite

CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE STATION — The weather was good Sunday morning as Blue Origin launched its New Glenn rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

The two-hour launch window opened at 6:45 a.m. ET, with the launch taking place just before 7:30 a.m.

The 45th Weather Squadron had given a 90% chance of good liftoff conditions, with the only concerns being cumulus clouds and the thick cloud layers rules.

Going into the blue

The reusable first-stage booster called Never Tell Me The Odds was used for this mission.

Its first mission was in November 2025, when it launched NASA’s ESCAPADE. The mission sent two satellites to Mars.

The first-stage booster landed on Blue Origin’s cargo ship Jacklyn, just like how SpaceX’s Falcon 9 first-stage boosters land on its droneships.

About the mission

The NG-3 mission will see the launch of AST SpaceMobile company's BlueBird 7, Block 2 satellite, to low-Earth orbit.

“BlueBird 7 will expand direct-to-smartphone broadband network capacity and help enable initial service rollout in 2026,” Blue Origin stated of the satellite with nearly 2,400 square feet arrays.

The AST SpaceMobile company stated that smartphones will benefit from its BlueBird satellites.

“AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation BlueBird satellites are designed to deliver 24/7 high-speed cellular broadband direct to everyday smartphones worldwide,” the Texas-based company stated.

In a separate press statement, the company added, “These satellites are designed to support full 4G and 5G broadband speeds, including voice, data, and video services.”

Quelle: NEWS13

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