Blue Origin cleared to fly New Glenn mega-rocket after April mishap

Blue Origin's New Glenn mega-rocket is set to resume its flights, following a green light from the Federal Aviation Administration. The announcement came on Friday, indicating that the rocket is no longer grounded after an incident during its April launch attempt. During that launch, the upper stage of the New Glenn encountered an unexpected thermal issue, which resulted in reduced thrust from one of its three engines. Unfortunately, this malfunction led to the failure of delivering the AST SpaceMobile satellite into orbit, which subsequently disintegrated upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. AST SpaceMobile has confirmed that it had insurance to cover the loss of the satellite. In response to the mishap, Blue Origin submitted a report to the FAA detailing the incident and outlining the corrective measures taken. However, specifics regarding these measures were not disclosed. This incident occurred during the third flight of the New Glenn, which otherwise performed without issues. Notably, the company achieved a milestone by successfully reusing the New Glenn booster stage, landing it on a drone ship for the second time. With the FAA's approval, Blue Origin is poised to accelerate its launch schedule for New Glenn. The company has ambitious plans to conduct up to 12 launches by the end of 2026, although it's unclear how the recent month-long delay might impact these goals.