Vodafone UK Targets Early 2027 for D2D Service Beta

Vodafone remains on track to begin beta testing its direct-to-device satellite mobile service in the UK in early 2027, despite launch delays affecting partner AST SpaceMobile’s constellation build-out.

Vodafone Group CEO Margherita Della Valle has said that AST now expects to have around 45 satellites available at the beginning of 2027, which Vodafone considers sufficient to begin UK beta testing. The UK is expected to be the first market where Vodafone launches the service.

The service will use AST SpaceMobile’s low Earth orbit satellites to deliver space-based 4G and 5G connectivity directly to standard mobile phones, without the need for specialist handsets. In the UK, Vodafone is expected to use part of its 900MHz spectrum band to support the satellite-to-mobile link.

The timetable follows AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 launch failure earlier this year, when the satellite was placed into the wrong orbit and later lost. AST has since reworked its launch plan, with further BlueBird satellites scheduled to launch via SpaceX Falcon 9 as it works toward the 45-satellite threshold.

Vodafone’s D2D plans sit within its broader Satellite Connect Europe partnership with AST SpaceMobile, which is designed to support direct-to-device mobile broadband services across Europe. The aim is to eliminate mobile dead zones by extending coverage to remote areas, maritime locations, mountains and other places beyond terrestrial network reach.