Hyderabad-based space start-up Skyroot Aerospace has flagged off its Vikram-1 rocket to Sriharikota, marking a decisive step towards India’s first privately built orbital mission.
The company is targeting a June launch window, which would represent a historic milestone for the country’s emerging private space sector.
The space-ready payload fairing, designed to protect satellites during flight, was ceremonially flagged off by Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy at Skyroot’s Hyderabad facility.
This event underscores the growing political and industrial support for private space ventures in India, which are seen as central to achieving the government’s ambition of a $45 billion space economy driven by private firms.
The upcoming flight will be the first in a series of Vikram-1 missions, as Skyroot transitions towards regular commercial launch operations for satellite operators worldwide.
The company has set an ambitious target of scaling production to one rocket per month by next year, with monthly launches planned thereafter.
Standing 23 metres tall, roughly equivalent to a seven-storey building, Vikram-1 has taken more than four years to develop. The rocket will undergo final testing over the next two months before lift-off, with the launch scheduled from ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
Skyroot’s co-founders, Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, emphasised that the maiden orbital mission is focused on validating performance rather than maximising payload. Although Vikram-1 has a payload capacity of 350 kg, the company will carry a smaller set of customer satellites to gather crucial flight data. A detailed payload manifest will be announced closer to launch.
The co-founders highlighted that launch capability remains a critical bottleneck in the global space economy, currently valued at about $600 billion and projected to grow to $1.8 trillion by 2030. With few private players offering end-to-end launch services, Skyroot is positioning itself as one of the early entrants from India.
Vikram-1 has been designed as a low-cost launch vehicle, with more than 90% of its components manufactured domestically. The use of carbon fibre structures reduces weight and enhances efficiency, while optimised production processes aim to keep costs competitive.
Skyroot had earlier demonstrated sub-orbital capability with its Vikram-S mission in 2022. The forthcoming orbital launch represents a significant leap forward, and a successful mission would mark the first such achievement by a private Indian start-up.
The company is targeting regular commercial launches by the end of this financial year, operating on a launch-as-a-service model that charges customers to deploy satellites into orbit.
Valued at approximately $500 million following its 2023 fundraise, Skyroot is planning a fresh funding round that could make it India’s first unicorn in the space sector.
The start-up has already raised about $100 million from investors including GIC, Temasek, Greenko and Mukesh Bansal, and secured ₹100 Crores in debt financing from BlackRock in March. These investments underline the confidence of global and domestic backers in Skyroot’s ability to deliver cost-effective and reliable launch services.
Agencies
