New Delhi, April 10 The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully conducted the second integrated air drop test (IADT-02) for the upcoming Gaganyaan mission at the space station in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
This system is crucial to ensure the safe recovery of the crew module – the capsule in which astronauts sit during a human flight – during re-entry and landing.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh congratulated the ISRO for successfully conducting the test.
"Congratulations #ISRO for the successful completion of the Second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) for #Gaganyaan, India's first Human Space flight scheduled next year. The second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) was successfully conducted at the Satish Dhawan Space Station in Sriharikota," Singh said in a post on X.
The IADT-02 follows the successful completion of the first IADT, which took place on August 24, 2025, at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Air drop tests simulate the final stage of a spacecraft's return to Earth. An aircraft or helicopter drops the spacecraft from a height to test various systems under different scenarios.
These tests include deploying the parachute system in case the mission is aborted mid-flight, assessing the system's performance when one parachute fails to open, and ensuring the spacecraft's orientation and safety during splashdown, etc.
In the IADT-02 test, a simulated crew module, weighing about 5.7 tonnes, was lifted by an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter to an altitude of about three kilometres and released over a designated drop zone in the sea, near the Sriharikota coast.
In a statement, ISRO said, "Ten parachutes of four types were deployed in a precise sequence during the descent of the crew module, gradually reducing the velocity for a safe touchdown. Subsequently, the simulated crew module was successfully recovered in coordination with the Indian Navy."