What is BlueBird Block-2 Mission that ISRO is launching on December 24? | Technology News

ISRO’s LVM3-M6, also known as the BlueBird Block-2 Mission, is a dedicated commercial launch planned on the LVM3 rocket to place the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite of the US-based AST SpaceMobile into orbit. The mission represents the sixth operational flight of the LVM3 launch vehicle, further underlining India’s growing role in commercial space launches.
The mission will be launched on at 8:54 AM on December 24, a day ahead of Chrmas from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. You can watch the livestream of the horic launch here:

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BlueBird Block-2 Mission features
The LVM3 is ISRO’s heavy-lift launch system and features a three-stage configuration. It uses two solid strap-on boosters (S200), a liquid-fuelled core stage (L110) and a cryogenic upper stage (C25). With a lift-off mass of about 640 tonnes and a height of 43.5 metres, the rocket can carry payloads of up to 4,200 kg to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit.
In earlier missions, the LVM3 has successfully carried flagship payloads such as Chandrayaan-2 and Chandrayaan-3, along with two OneWeb missions that together deployed 72 satellites. Its most recent flight was the LVM3-M5/CMS-03 mission, which was completed successfully on November 2, 2025.
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Where will BlueBird Block-2 Mission be deployed?
Under the LVM3-M6 mission, the rocket will deploy the BlueBird Block-2 satellite into Low Earth Orbit. The LEO is the region of space where satellites orbit closest to the Earth’s crust and is  about 160 km up to 1,600 km high.Story continues below this ad
The spacecraft is the largest commercial communications satellite ever to be placed in LEO and also the heaviest payload launched the LVM3 from Indian territory. BlueBird Block-2 is part of a new generation of satellites developed to enable space-based cellular broadband services, allowing direct connectivity to standard mobile smartphones without the need for specialised equipment.