Photo: ISRO
Skyroot Aerospace, the Hyderabad-based, space startup last night achieved a significant milestone ahead of its maiden flight of its orbital launch vehicle, Vikram-1 later in 2025.
The company successfully static test fired the rocket’s Stage 1 carbon composite solid fuel booster stage at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre- SHAR, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
Vikram-1 is India’s first privately developed orbital launch vehicle.
The static test, conducted under the aegis of ISRO, validated the performance of the 30-ton booster stage of Skyroot’s orbital launch vehicle, Vikram-1.
Named Kalam-1200 — after former President of India and renowned rocket scientist Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam — the rocket stage is the largest monolithic solid rocket motor developed in India’s space sector. At 11 meters long, it can generate nearly 1200 kN of peak vacuum thrust — nearly 10 times as much as that of an engine on a Boeing 737 Max.
The casting of Kalam-1200 — a complex process of pouring and shaping the bespoke solid fuel propellant inside the carbon composite casing — was accomplished by ISRO’s SDSC-SHAR at Sriharikota.
Friday’s static test validated the ballistic performance, burn rate, and thermal protection system of the motor, among other parameters, as well as the composite flex nozzle system. The flex nozzle system is a steering mechanism for the rocket, controlled by Vikram-1’s Mission Computer — the onboard command and control computer that runs the algorithm guiding the rocket autonomously from the launch pad to orbit.
The rocket stage was fired for around 110 seconds and generated the desired thrust within the estimated lower and upper bounds throughout its burn time, according to Skyroot.
During flight, Kalam-1200 will lift Vikram-1 from the launchpad to an altitude of over 50 kilometers, before a precise and advanced pneumatic system enables seamless stage separation, paving the way for the upper stages of the rocket to continue its flight to Earth’s orbit.
“Witnessing Kalam-1200 roar to life at the test stand is the culmination of years of hard engineering by the young team at Skyroot,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, Co-founder and CEO, Skyroot Aerospace. “A success built by many hands, this is an example of how ISRO’s state-of-the art facilities and IN-SPACeactive support can enable cutting edge technology development in the private space sector.
Dr Pawan Goenka, Chairman, IN-Space said on X : “Congratulations to Skyroot for successful completion of the static test of the first stage solid motor of their orbital flight, largest built by the private sector. This is a landmark achievement and readies Skyroot to create history with the orbital launch.”
The Vikram-1 launch vehicle, designed and developed by Skyroot, is poised to be the first privately developed Indian rocket to reach orbit. The launch vehicle will provide on-demand and customized launches for global small satellite operators, both in India and worldwide.
This post was last modified on August 9, 2025 6:40 pm