India’s Heaviest Rocket, LVM-3, Launches Record 6,100-kg US Satellite, Lifting Gaganyaan Hopes

By precisely launching the US-built BlueBird Block-2 satellite into orbit, ISRO's LVM-3 achieved its ninth consecutive success, making it India's largest-ever launch and bolstering its aspirations for international commercial space travel.

In its third commercial mission, India's biggest rocket, LVM-3, successfully launched the 6,100 kg US satellite Bluebird Block-2 into orbit with a deviation of less than 2 km. It is the ninth consecutive success for LVM-3, according to ISRO chairman V. Narayanan, which gives hope for the next Gaganyaan mission, which would use a human-rated version of the rocket to transport Indian astronauts.

PM Narendra Modi wrote on X that India's space journey has reached a proud milestone with the successful LVM3-M6 launch, which placed the largest satellite ever launched from Indian soil – the US spacecraft BlueBird Block-2 – into its designated orbit. It enhances India's capacity for heavy-lift launches and solidifies our expanding position in the international commercial launch industry.

Mohan, Managing Director of ISRO's commercial subsidiary NSIL, stated that they were happy to provide the launch as a "Christmas gift" despite early-month scheduling delays. The US-based AST SpaceMobile created the BlueBird Block-2 satellite, which is a component of a low-Earth-orbit constellation intended to offer direct-to-mobile communication, allowing satellites to speak with regular mobile phones without the need for specialized ground stations.

ASTSpace Mobile's Mark McLaren expressed their gratitude for the wonderful ride.

The weight of the cargo made the launch noteworthy; in the past, India had to contract out its own bigger launches to private companies like Ariane Space and SpaceX. Two sets of 36 OneWeb satellites, each weighing more than 5,700 kg, were the heaviest satellites that ISRO has ever flown using the same vehicle.

The space agency recently used the same launch vehicle to place its largest satellite, the 4,410-kg CMS-03, into geosynchronous transfer orbit, setting a new record. Ariane previously carried ISRO's bigger satellites, including GSAT-11 (5,854 kg) and GSAT-24 (4,181 kg), while SpaceX launched GSAT-20 (4,700 kg) last year. As a commercial launch, the mission was noteworthy as well. PSLV has carried out the majority of India's 434 foreign satellite launches, but LVM-3 has completed a few commercial missions, such as OneWeb launches in 2022 and 2023. Chairperson Narayanan emphasized that ISRO's ability to launch quickly is demonstrated by the short intervals between LVM-3 missions.