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It is a historic day for ISRO and India’s space agenda. The Indian Space Research Organisation successfully launched the BlueBird Block-2 spacecraft of the US-based AST SpaceMobile aboard its heavy-lift launch vehicle, LVM3-M6, on December 24, 2025. This is a momentous occasion for the nation’s burgeoning commercial space ambitions.
The rocket lifted off from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, in Andhra Pradesh at 8.55 am. At a mass of 6,100 kg, BlueBird Block-2 is the heaviest payload ever placed in LEO by ISRO’s LVM3 rocket. The space agency confirmed that the satellite was successfully injected into its orbit.
This is the first time ISRO’s LVM3 carried such a mass through LEO, beating the previous record of approximately 4,400 kg by the launch vehicle in the LVM3-M5 mission. It is a strong testimony to the reliability and capability of India’s heavy-lift launch vehicle, more popularly known as ISRO’s ‘Baahubali rocket’.
Importantly, the mission was carried out under a commercial agreement between ISRO’s commercial arm, NewSpace India Ltd, and US-based AST SpaceMobile, highlighting India’s rising role in the launch service market worldwide.
AST SpaceMobile is developing the world’s first space-based cellular broadband network, directly with standard smartphones. BlueBird Block-2 is a next-generation communication satellite designed to support 4G and 5G voice, video calls, messaging, and data services globally for both commercial and government users without specialized ground equipment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi acknowledged the launch as a proud moment for the Indian space venture and a sign of the country’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat push.
Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh also praised ISRO by saying that the agency has been continuously achieving ‘one success after the other.’
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The LVM3, known as GSLV Mk III, is a 43.5-meter-high spacecraft with three stages and a cryogenic engine built by ISRO.
The same rocket has already been credited with numerous flights, including the launches of Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3, and OneWeb satellite groups. It has been a more and more influential character in the Indian space program, just starting to show its strength.
