The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully conducted the second integrated air drop test (IADT-02) for the upcoming Gaganyaan mission at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. This system is crucial for ensuring the safe recovery of the crew module – the capsule in which astronauts sit during a human flight. After the module is released, a parachute system, consisting of 10 parachutes, is deployed, helping the capsule to decelerate to a safe splashdown speed. 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.
In the first IADT, a 4.8-tonne dummy crew module was dropped from a height of three kilometers by a Chinook helicopter. 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 include deploying the parachute system in case the mission is aborted mid-flight, assessing system performance when one parachute fails to open, and ensuring the spacecraft's orientation and safety during splashdown. Union Minister Jitendra Singh congratulated ISRO for successfully conducting the test. India's first human spaceflight will be launched from Sriharikota in 2027.
