Shafaqna English- Skyroot Aerospace, an Indian private space firm, launched the country’s first privately-built orbital rocket on Saturday(18 Jul 2026)—a significant test of India’s push to compete more aggressively in the international commercial launch sector.
The Vikram-1 rocket blasted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota at 0635 GMT, leaving a trail of fire and smoke behind. On its maiden orbital flight—named “Mission Aagaman”—it carried multiple customer payloads and experiments designed to operate in orbit.
The rocket placed its payload into a 450 km orbit approximately 15 minutes after launch, securing India’s position as the third country to have achieved orbital launch capability through private enterprise.
Source: Reuters