Gaganyaan Mission: ISRO TV-D1 flight test placed on hold

Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) [India]: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday aborted the launch of the first uncrewed test flight (TV-D1 Flight Test) in the Gaganyaan Mission.

“Gaganyaan’s First Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) launch has been placed on hold. The next schedule will be announced soon,” ISRO chief S Somnath said.

“The lift-off attempt could not happen today…engine ignition has not happened in the nominal course; we need to find out what went wrong. The vehicle is safe, we need to look at what happened…we will come back soon…the computer which is doing function has withheld the launch…we will correct it and schedule launch soon.” the ISRO chief said in a brief interaction with the media.

This flight Test Vehicle Abort mission is conducted to demonstrate the performance of the Crew Escape system as part of the Gaganyaan mission. It will also test the safe landing in the Bay of Bengal after the rocket launch.

The mission objective of the TV-D1 launch are: Flight demonstration and evaluation of Test Vehicle sub systems, flight demonstration and evaluation of Crew Escape System including various separation systems, crew Module characteristics & deceleration systems demonstration at higher altitude & its recovery.

This mission represents a significant milestone in India’s effort to demonstrate that it is possible to send humans into space. The test flight project aims to prove India’s capacity to send humans into a 400-kilometre orbit and safely bring them back to earth with a splashdown in the Bay of Bengal Sea.

Around 20 major tests, including three uncrewed missions of the Human-Rated Launch Vehicle (HLVM3), are planned to ensure the success of the mission.

The Gaganyaan project envisages a demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching a crew of three members into an orbit of 400 km for a 3-day mission and bringing them safely back to earth by landing in Indian waters.

This programme will make India the fourth nation to launch a manned spaceflight mission after the US, Russia, and China. Building on the success of the Indian space initiatives, including the recent Chandrayan-3 and Aditya L1 missions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed that India should now aim for new and ambitious goals, including setting up ‘Bharatiya Antariksha Station’ (Indian Space Station) by 2035 and sending the first Indian to the Moon by 2040.