WASHINGTON – Federal aviation regulators announced Monday they are mandating a comprehensive investigation following a malfunction during Blue Origin’s New Glenn 3 rocket mission on Sunday.
The Federal Aviation Administration has directed Blue Origin to carry out a complete mishap investigation and must give final approval to the company’s report and any remedial measures before flight operations can continue. While the rocket achieved a successful liftoff from its Florida launch site, the second stage experienced problems that prevented the AST SpaceMobile communications satellite from reaching its designated orbital position.
The space company will be prohibited from conducting additional launches until federal regulators review and approve both the investigation findings and proposed corrective measures.
