By Joey Roulette
WASHINGTON, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Firefly Aerospace will supply core engines for a new rocket under development by satellite communications firm AST SpaceMobile in a $1.3 billion deal, underscoring a push among satellite companies to secure dependable access to space.
The engine deal, announced on Friday, is a key part of new plans by AST SpaceMobile to develop its own heavy-lift rocket named Blacklift as it races to deploy a satellite constellation for global cellular broadband service and wean itself off a reliance on third-party rockets like SpaceX's Falcon 9.
Firefly will build and supply 27 of its new Miranda engines and 9 in-space Vira engines for the first three Blacklift rockets under the agreement, which also grants a license to AST to eventually manufacture the engines itself.
AST said it is targeting late 2028 for the debut launch of Blacklift, an ambitious development timeline. The company said the rocket is "designed for reusability" and can loft up to five of its BlueBird satellites per launch.
(Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Joe Bavier)