By R Anil Kumar
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India’s first uncrewed Gaganyaan test flight (G-1) is officially targeted for launch between August and September 2026 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. Following clearances from the National Review Committee, this half-humanoid flight will send the robot Vyommitra to space to test system safety and re-entry dynamics before the crewed mission
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ISRO has planned three unmanned missions — G-1, G-2 and G-3 –which are slated before the first humanoid mission
BENGALURU. The first satellite launch for the Gaganyaan mission, the G-1 (half-humanoid) mission is all set to take off in the next 3-4 months.“The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) got clearances for G-1 from the National Review Committee in early May, 2026. The half-huanoid- G-1- mission is expected to be launched in the coming 3-4 months,” sources in ISRO told R Anil Kumar (Doordarshan).
As normally, campaign activities for any mission start 60 days before the launch date of the satellite. In case of the Gaganyaan, the campaign will start 90 days ahead of the scheduled mission. This is because Gaganyaan is a complex human-rated mission and everything is being built with latest state of the act technology indigenously. Three unmanned missions (G-1, G-2 and G-3) are slated before the first humanoid mission.
The spacecraft will carry Vyommitra, a half-humanoid robot, to simulate astronaut conditions and provide critical data on life-support and environmental systems. The mission will demonstrate the performance of the crew module and service module in low Earth orbit, serving as a precursor to future human spaceflight under the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme.
ISRO said new reliable robust designs and sub-systems have been used. Third party inspection was done before presenting the final file to the national review committee.
The Official said, uncrewed test flight sequence is a critical stepping stone for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
The payload capsule will carry Vyommitra, a female-looking half-humanoid robot designed to evaluate life-support systems, environmental control, and microgravity conditions.
Gaganyaan, crewed spacecraft being developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Three uncrewed test flights are planned before the crewed flight, with the first planned during the second half of 2026with two more uncrewed test flights, G2 and G3, to be launched before the crewed flight, H1, in 2027. H1 will carry three astronauts who will spend up to a week in Low Earth Orbit in2027.
The first crewed flight is now planned for 2027.
India would become the fourth nation to launch its own crewed spacecraft, after the Soviet Union (later Russia), the United States, and China.
Gaganyaan will consist of two parts, the crew module (CM) and the service module (SM), which together will form the orbital module. The CM will be shaped like a truncated cone and is designed to carry up to three astronauts.
The Crew Module will sit on top of the Service Module , which will contain the propulsion and power systems of the craft.
Upon reentry the CM will separate from the SM and splash down in the ocean. Gaganyaan will launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on top of the Human Rated Launch Vehicle (HRLV), a version of India’s most powerful rocket, the Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM3) that has been modified for crewed spaceflight.
Development on the Indian crewed spacecraft began in 2012. The LVM3 had its first flight in December 2014, during which it carried a CM mock-up on a suborbital trajectory that ended with a successful splashdown in the Bay of Bengal.
Four astronauts, Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap, and Shubhanshu Shukla, all pilots in the Indian Air Force, are selected for the Gaganyaan program.
The four did the first part of their training in Russia in early 2020 and the remainder at ISRO’s astronaut training facility in Bengaluru. Shubhanshu Shukla also flew to the International Space Station in 2025 on the commercial Axiom– 4 Mission.
GaganyaanLaunch Vehicle: The spacecraft will launch atop the Human Rated Launch Vehicle (HLVM3), a modified and man-rated version of India’s heaviest rocket, the LVM3.
Mission Objectives: The flight will validate end-to-end mission operations, aerodynamics, and the critical separation, re-entry, and safe recovery of the Crew Module in Indian territorial waters.
Future Schedule: This G-1 mission will pave the way for a second uncrewed test flight (G-2) before the historic crewed mission (H-1) carrying the four selected Indian Air Force pilots into Low Earth Orbit in 2027.
