AST SpaceMobile Splits Launch Deals Across Three Providers, Hedging Against 1990s LEO Trap

AST SpaceMobile secured multi-launch agreements with SpaceX, Blue Origin, and ISRO in November 2024, spreading constellation deployment across three distinct providers. Single-provider dependence starved Iridium and Globalstar in the late 1990s: schedule leverage for the launch operator became existential risk for the satellite company. AST's split manifest introduces competitive tension on pricing and distributes schedule risk across operators with different inclination and altitude flexibility.