Despite their large size, the BlueBirds were neatly packed into the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Once deployed in Earth’s orbit, the satellites will then unfold their communication arrays, which also feature solar panels to receive energy from the Sun. AST SpaceMobile’s CEO Abel Avellan added that the company has achieved communication with all five BlueBird satellites.

The company, which has received investment from AT&T, Verizon and Google, plans on kicking off beta tests with the BlueBird satellites as soon as this December. However, AST SpaceMobile will need to launch between 45 to 60 commercial satellites before it can offer continuous coverage to the US, which will likely take several more months, if not a year or longer.