ISRO’s Air Drop Test Boosts Gaganyaan Mission Roadmap

ISRO’s Air Drop Test Latest News

• ISRO successfully conducted its first Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-1), marking a key step for the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission. 
• A five-tonne dummy crew capsule was released from a helicopter to evaluate its parachute-based deceleration system for safe splashdown. 
• The test validated critical safety mechanisms needed to ensure astronaut survival during re-entry and landing.
• While the first uncrewed mission is expected by late 2025, India’s first crewed spaceflight is planned for 2027.

Integrated Air Drop Test

• An Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT) simulates the final phase of a spacecraft’s return to Earth by dropping it from an aircraft or helicopter. 
• This allows engineers to evaluate critical systems such as parachute deployment in abort scenarios, performance during partial parachute failure, and crew module safety during splashdown. 
• However, it cannot fully replicate actual re-entry conditions, since helicopters cannot reach sufficient altitudes. 
• To address this, ISRO conducts sub-orbital or orbital tests—such as the Test Vehicle Abort Mission (TV-D1) in October 2023—to validate the crew escape system and performance under real re-entry conditions.

Purpose of IADT-1

• IADT-1 was conducted to evaluate the parachute-based deceleration system crucial for safely bringing back the Gaganyaan crew module after re-entry. 
• In this test, an uncrewed capsule was dropped from a helicopter at about 3 km altitude, with parachutes expected to deploy in a precise sequence. 
• The process simulated the final stages of a real mission, where the capsule is slowed first by atmospheric drag and heat shields, then by drogue parachutes, and finally by three large main parachutes. 
• The goal was to ensure the capsule reduced its speed to about 8 m/s before splashdown.

IADT-1 in the Gaganyaan Roadmap

• In the broader roadmap, IADT-1 lies between TV-D1 (2023 abort test) and the G1 uncrewed mission (late 2025), forming part of a sequence of thousands of tests ISRO must complete before human flight.

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Execution of the Air Drop Test

• The air drop test simulated a launch pad abort scenario where astronauts would need emergency ejection. 
• A 4.8-tonne dummy crew module was dropped from 3 km altitude using a Chinook helicopter. 
• Once released, the onboard avionics autonomously triggered deceleration and deployed 10 parachutes, which slowed the module to a safe splashdown speed of about 8 m/s. 
• For comparison, parachutes in real re-entry missions typically deploy at around 150 m/s. 
• The test also confirmed the crew module’s orientation and recovery process during splashdown.

Current Status of the Gaganyaan Mission

• The Gaganyaan mission aims to send Indian astronauts to low-earth orbit by 2027. 
• To achieve this, ISRO is conducting a series of rigorous tests to validate safety and mission systems.

Test Vehicle Missions

• After the success of Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1), ISRO is preparing TV-D2, scheduled for the third quarter of 2025.
• This will simulate a more complex abort scenario and validate the crew escape system.

Uncrewed Demonstration Missions

• The first uncrewed mission, Gaganyaan-1 (G-1), is planned for the fourth quarter of 2025.
• It will test technology preparedness, using an unpressurised crew module without the Environment Control and Life Support System (ECLSS).
• Two additional uncrewed missions, G-2 and G-3, are also scheduled for launch next year to further validate systems.

Hardware and Systems Preparedness

• Crew module and service module structures have been manufactured.
• Propulsion systems for the crew module, service module, and crew escape system have been tested.
• The LVM3 rocket has been fully human-rated, incorporating redundancies for crew safety.
• A Life Support System model has also been built.

Infrastructure and Facilities

• Key facilities are complete: Orbital Module Preparation Facility, Gaganyaan Control Centre, crew training facility, and launch pad modifications.
• A recovery plan for the crew module after splashdown has also been finalised.

India’s Long-Term Human Spaceflight Goals

• The Gaganyaan mission is only the first step in India’s broader human spaceflight roadmap. 
• The government has set ambitious targets, including establishing the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) by 2035 and achieving an Indian crewed lunar landing by 2040. 
• These milestones will require repeated missions, long-duration stays in orbit, and advanced deep-space technologies.
• Progress may face delays — for instance, IADT-1 was pushed from April 2024 to August 2025 — but each milestone strengthens India’s capabilities. 
• The upcoming TV-D2 mission will test the Crew Escape System in a complex abort scenario, while ISRO’s SpaDeX mission has already demonstrated in-orbit docking, a key technology for BAS, Chandrayaan-4, and future lunar missions.

Source: TH | IE