‘Heaviest satellite ever lifted from Indian soil using an Indian launcher’: ISRO chairman after launch of BlueBird Block-2 satellite

SRIHARIKOTA: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman V Narayanan on Wednesday hailed the successful launch of the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite, calling it the “heaviest satellite ever lifted from Indian soil using an Indian launcher”.

Narayanan highlighted that the satellite was injected into its intended orbit with precision, marking a significant achievement for ISRO. he emphasised that the successful launch of the BlueBird Block-2 satellite significantly boosts India’s confidence for the forthcoming Gaganyaan mission. It strengthens India’s space capabilities and lays a solid foundation for the future of the Gaganyaan mission, he said.

During his speech, V Narayanan said, “Launch vehicle has successfully and precisely injected the BlueBird Block 2 communication satellite in the intended orbit. This is the first dedicated commercial launch for a customer from the USA, that is AST SpaceMobile… This is our 104th launch from Sriharikota, also the 9th successful mission of the LVM-3 launch vehicle, demonstrating its 100% reliability… ”

This mission, which was the first dedicated commercial launch for US-based AST SpaceMobile, also marked the 104th launch from Sriharikota and the 9th successful flight of the LVM-3 launch vehicle.

“This is a back-to-back mission of the LVM-3 in just 52 days… This is the heaviest satellite ever lifted from Indian soil using an Indian launcher. This is also the third fully commercial mission of LVM-3 and the vehicle has demonstrated its excellent track record”, he said.

A proud moment for India!

Heartiest congratulations to the entire team of @isro on the successful launch of LVM3-M6, deploying the BlueBird Block-2 satellite into Low Earth Orbit.

This landmark mission reflects India’s growing global stature in space technology, enabled by the… pic.twitter.com/fV0AeYNTsg

— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) December 24, 2025

Narayanan said, “This is the heaviest satellite ever lifted from Indian soil, and we have achieved it. I am extremely happy to announce the performance of orbit, what we got is about less than two kilometres, which is one of the best performances of any launch vehicle in the global arena. With this mission, India has successfully launched 434 satellites for 34 countries. The last vehicle on November 2nd, and today, after 52 days, a successful mission has been accomplished.”

“The improvement that we have made is a solid motor hydro system. For the first time, India’s high electro-mechanical activator is in today’s mission. Today’s mission is very important for us. This is the mission for the Gaganyan programme of India. It improves our confidence for the Gaganyaan programme”, he said.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite of the United States’ AST SpaceMobile on Wednesday morning. The satellite was successfully placed in Orbit, and the mission was declared a success. The launch took place from the Satish Dhawan Space Station in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, at 8.55 am IST.

The mission deploys the next-generation communication satellite designed to provide high-speed cellular broadband directly to smartphones worldwide. The BlueBird Block-2 spacecraft would be the heaviest payload to be launched into Low Earth Orbit in the history of the LVM3 rocket.

The satellite is part of the next generation of BlueBird Block-2 communication satellites, designed to provide space-based cellular broadband connectivity directly to standard mobile smartphones, ISRO said.

LVM3, developed by ISRO, is a three-stage launch vehicle comprising two solid strap-on motors (S200), a liquid core stage (L110), and a cryogenic upper stage (C25). It has a lift-off mass of 640 tonnes, a height of 43.5 meters, and a payload capability of 4,200 kg to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).

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 this year.

AST SpaceMobile, as per its website, is building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government applications.

According to AST SpaceMobile, its BlueBird satellites provide broadband directly to standard smartphones without specialised hardware or phone modifications, allowing users to make video calls, browse the web, and use 4G and 5G internet speeds from anywhere on Earth. (ANI)