ISRO advances Gaganyaan prep with successful Air Drop Test at Sriharikota
Bengaluru: The Indian Space Research Organisation has moved a step closer to the first uncrewed Gaganyaan mission after completing a key test in April, even as it has yet to announce firm launch dates for 2026.
ISRO executed the second Integrated Air Drop Test, or IADT-02, for the Gaganyaan programme at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. During the test, an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter lifted a simulated Crew Module weighing about 5.7 tonnes — equivalent to the mass of the Crew Module for the first uncrewed Gaganyaan flight, G1 — to an altitude of about 3 km. The module was then released over a designated drop zone in the sea near the Sriharikota coast. ISRO called the test “a significant step towards the readiness for the G1 mission.”
Assembly of the Human-Rated Launch Vehicle Mark-3 for the first uncrewed flight began at Sriharikota on December 18, 2025. While ISRO has not released a launch schedule for G1 or other 2026 missions, preparations from Sriharikota to Leh are in full swing, the agency said, as it works toward India’s first human spaceflight programme.
