Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-1 Reaches Orbit, Making India the Third Country With Private Orbital Launch Capability
Skyroot's Vikram-1 rocket reached a 450 km orbit on its July 18 debut flight, making India the third country with private orbital launch capability.
Editor's Note ·
- Correction:
- The article states that 'After the rocket reached orbit, Chandana said, "We have done everything that could be done to test Vikram-1 on the ground," and added, "I think this is a historic moment not just for Skyroot but also for India."' Per SpaceNews, only the second remark was made after reaching orbit. The first quote was made 'in a prelaunch statement,' before liftoff.
Overview
Skyroot Aerospace’s Vikram-1 rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 0635 GMT on July 18 and reached a planned 450-kilometer low Earth orbit roughly 15 minutes later, according to SpaceNews and a Reuters report carried by The Star. The successful debut made India “the third country to achieve orbital launch capability through private enterprise,” according to both Al Jazeera and The Star.
What We Know
Liftoff was originally targeted for 0600 GMT but slipped to 0635 GMT, according to The Star; SpaceNews reported the roughly 35-minute delay followed a technical issue found at the T-minus-5-minute mark in the countdown.
The flight, which Skyroot dubbed “Mission Aagaman” — Sanskrit for “arrival” — according to SpaceNews, used a three-stage, roughly 22-meter rocket topped with a liquid-fuel orbital adjustment module, according to Al Jazeera and The Star. The orbital adjustment module is powered by a 3D-printed engine, a technology Skyroot says is flying in India for the first time, The Star reported. Vikram-1 is designed to carry up to 350 kilograms to low Earth orbit, according to Al Jazeera, The Star, and The Tribune. The rocket is named after Vikram Sarabhai, regarded as the “Father of India’s space program,” according to The Tech Portal.
Vikram-1 carried two cubesats — one built by Skyroot and one by Indian startup Grahaa Space — along with hosted payloads from Dcubed and Cosmoserve Space, according to SpaceNews. The Tribune reported the manifest also included Skyroot’s own SCOPE platform and an artwork piece from Cosmos Diamonds titled “Cosmic Bloom,” while Al Jazeera reported the rocket carried “experimental equipment, a lab-grown diamond and a miniature 18-carat gold sculpture commemorating India’s national space programme.” The flight also carried a handwritten postcard from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi bearing the words “Vande Mataram,” according to The Tribune. Modi said the achievement would “encourage countless youngsters to dream bigger and innovate fearlessly,” according to Al Jazeera.
Ahead of the flight, Skyroot co-founder and CEO Pawan Kumar Chandana said, “On July 18, we are eager to see how Vikram-1 performs in a real-flight environment for the first time,” according to The Tribune. After the rocket reached orbit, Chandana said, “We have done everything that could be done to test Vikram-1 on the ground,” and added, “I think this is a historic moment not just for Skyroot but also for India,” according to SpaceNews. In a company statement cited by The Star, Skyroot said: “Mission Aagaman is a grand success. This is a test flight. We will be doing a few of these before we move into routine commercial flights.”
Hyderabad-based Skyroot was founded in 2018 and became the first Indian space-sector company to reach a $1 billion valuation earlier in 2026, according to Al Jazeera and The Star. As previously reported by The Machine Herald, the company raised $60 million weeks ahead of this launch in a round that valued it at $1.1 billion. Vikram-1’s debut follows the company’s 2022 Vikram-S mission, which reached space on a suborbital trajectory but did not achieve orbit, according to Al Jazeera and The Tribune.
What We Don’t Know
Skyroot has not disclosed a firm date for its next Vikram-1 flight. The company said only that “a few” more test flights would follow before it moves into “routine commercial flights,” per The Star. Detailed telemetry from the flight has not yet been published; The Star reported only that the mission was designed to validate the rocket’s propulsion, avionics, telemetry, guidance, navigation and control systems and to collect data for future commercial launches.
Context
The Star described the flight as “a key test of national efforts to compete for a bigger share of the global commercial launch market,” placing Skyroot alongside American and Chinese private launch providers as one of only three national private sectors to have reached orbit.