Naga Bharath Daka and Pawan Kumar Chandana, founders of Skyroot Aerospace, pose in front of Vikram-I, at the company’s campus in Hyderabad.
| Photo Credit: PRIYANSHU SINGH
Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder & CEO of Skyroot Aerospace, spoke to The Hindu after the Hyderabad-based private space launch company announced the launch window for Vikram-1’s first test flight named Mission Aagaman from July 12 to August 4, 2026. The Vikram-1 launch vehicle is India’s first privately developed orbital-class rocket designed to carry small satellites weighing up to 350 kg to Low Earth Orbit. The rocket is now fully stacked at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.Excerpts from the interview:What can we expect from Vikram-1’s first test flight?
The launch can happen anytime between July 12 and August 4 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC SHAR) in Sriharikota. Vikram-1 will be launched from the first launchpad of SDSC SHAR, which is India’s historic launchpad from where ISRO’s workhorse — the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) — is generally launched. It is for the first time ever that a private company is launching from SDSC SHAR. The mission duration would be around 20 minutes. While ISRO will be offering their facilities, like launchpad, everything else during the mission will be overseen by us.
