Skyroot’s Vikram-1 Marks India’s Private Space Milestone

PM Modi Hails Historic Private Space Mission

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the Skyroot Aerospace team and its young engineers on a historic achievement for the country’s private space sector. He also mentioned that the success of the mission has brought great pride to India and how it has propelled India’s space ambitions forward and inspired young minds across the country.

PM Modi wrote, "Spoke to the team of Skyroot Aerospace and congratulated them on the successful launch of Vikram-1. This is a defining moment in India’s space journey. The growing participation of our private sector is opening new frontiers and accelerating innovation. This achievement will encourage countless youngsters to dream bigger and innovate fearlessly" on social media platform X.

PM Modi’s congratulatory message was printed on a postcard to be sent into space as part of the launch. The Prime Minister’s succinct message on a postcard for the Skyroot team was "Vande Mataram."

Minor Technical Hold Before Successful Launch 

The rocket launch initially encountered a slight hiccup. Several minutes before the scheduled lift-off time of 11:30 AM IST, the mission control team initiated a “planned hold”. The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) reported that “minor anomalies” in the navigation alignment parameters were identified by the Automated Launch Sequence (ALS).

In order to ensure the integrity of the first flight of an entirely new vehicle architecture, Skyroot engineers prioritised a meticulous approach. 

During this time, the crew paused the launch to check that the sensors were correctly synced with ground tracking systems, and it reset the path error algorithms. This pause was an indication of the technical strength of this startup based in Hyderabad. Within 30 minutes, the navigation systems were cleared for launch and T-zero reset. The countdown proceeded as scheduled, with the new window of launch set at 12:05 PM IST.

Mission Aagaman Marks Historic Private Breakthrough

Vikram-1 is a 7-storey high, fully-carbon composite, multi-stage orbital launch vehicle capable of placing up to 350 kilograms of payload into Low Earth Orbit (LEO). Its design incorporates entirely in-house developed propulsion systems, including advanced 3D-printed rocket engines and high-performance solid rocket motors.

The historic mission, codenamed Mission 'Aagaman,' signifies the entry of Indian private industry into the business of orbital launching, joining a handful of countries with commercial companies developing their own orbital rockets. The Vikram-1 is carrying postcards signed by its engineers, technicians and team members who made the launch possible.