Isro carries out second landing test of Reusable Launch Vehicle

Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on Friday successfully carried out a second test landing of its Reusable Launch Vehicle, Pushpak. 

The second in the series, the RLV LEX-02 landing experiment was carried out at the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR), in Chitradurga, Karnataka at 7:30 am on 22 March 2024. 

The second landing test was carried out with the original winged body structure and all the flight systems used in earlier test, RLV-LEX-01, thereby demonstrating the reuse capability of the hardware and flight systems.

However, for the second test, the airframe structure and landing gear were strengthened to tolerate higher landing loads, based on the observations from RLV-LEX-01.

Also, this time round, the RLV, after its release from an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter, was made to undertake more difficult manoeuvres, including dispersions - both cross-range and downrange - and a fully autonomous landing on the runway. ‘

The winged vehicle, which was released from a height of 4.5 km, approached the runway autonomously. After carrying out cross-range corrections, Pushpak landed precisely on the runway and used its parachute, landing gear brakes and nose wheel steering system to come to a halt.

With this second mission, Isro has validated the indigenous technologies for navigation, control systems, landing gear and deceleration systems needed for the high-speed autonomous landing of a returning space vehicle.

Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in collaboration with the Liquid Propulsion System Centre (LPSC), Isro Inertial Systems Unit (IISU) and various agencies, including IAF, ADE, ADRDE and CEMILAC.

Isro chairman and secretary, DoS, S Somanath congratulated the team for the flawless execution of the complex experiment.