SpaceX Starship Blue Origin New Glenn rocket FAA grounding space launch failure Amazon Leo satellites SpaceX Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral launch orbital insertion failure commercial spaceflight

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has grounded Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket following an incident during its launch from Cape Canaveral on Sunday, according to reports from the Orlando Sentinel and other sources.

The rocket performed nominally during ascent but ultimately failed to insert its payload into the correct orbit. The FAA has classified the incident as a “mishap” and initiated an investigation to “enhance public safety, determine the root cause, and identify corrective actions to prevent recurrence.”

The FAA stated in an official release that a “return to flight is contingent on the agency determining that any system, process, or procedure related to the mishap does not compromise public safety.”

Blue Origin has not disclosed details about the failure. The mission was intended to deploy a satellite into a 285-mile orbit after completing two burns, but telemetry data indicates the payload only reached a 95-mile orbit, which is unsustainable for long-term operation.

This marks the third mission for New Glenn and the second time the FAA has grounded the rocket. During its debut launch, Blue Origin failed to recover the rocket, leading to a nearly three-month flight ban. The FAA has not yet announced a timeline for New Glenn’s return to flight, leaving uncertainty around Blue Origin’s plans to launch Amazon’s Leo broadband satellites later this year.

The grounding follows a pattern of FAA-enforced pauses for other rockets, including:

  • Blue Origin’s New Shepard
  • SpaceX’s Falcon 9
  • SpaceX’s Starship
Source: Engadget
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