ISRO Mission / Another achievement of ISRO, a hat-trick of successful landing of 'Pushpak Vimana'

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has achieved a major success on Sunday. It has achieved its third consecutive and last success in the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) Landing Experiment (LEX). ISRO has tweeted this information. The third and final test in the LEX series was conducted at the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, Karnataka. This was the RLV LEX-3 mission after the success of RLV LEX-1

Vikrant Shekhawat : Jun 23, 2024, 12:27 PM

ISRO Mission: Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has achieved a major success on Sunday. It has achieved its third consecutive and last success in the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) Landing Experiment (LEX). ISRO has tweeted this information. The third and final test in the LEX series was conducted at the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, Karnataka. This was the RLV LEX-3 mission after the success of RLV LEX-1 and LEX-2 missions. This mission was carried out in more challenging release conditions. At the same time, the autonomous landing capability of RLV was demonstrated again. The cross range of 500 meters was kept in LEX-3 as against 150 meters for RLV LEX-2.

ISRO tweeted, 'ISRO has scored a hat-trick in RLV LEX. “Pushpak” made a precise horizontal landing, demonstrating advanced autonomous capabilities under challenging conditions. ISRO says that the winged Pushpak aircraft was released from the Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter at an altitude of 4.5 km. This release point was 4.5 km from the runway. Pushpak automatically performed cross-range correction maneuvers and approached the runway. Made a precise horizontal landing on the center line of the runway. RLV-LEX uses multiple-sensor fusion. Which includes sensors like inertial sensor, radar altimeter, flush air data system, pseudolight system and NAVSC. Led by Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, this mission was a collaborative effort involving several ISRO centers Space Application Center, ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network, Satish Dhawan Space Center SHAR, Sriharikota. Landing practice amid strong winds

This mission practiced landing a spacecraft returning from space amid strong winds, reinforcing the space agency's expertise in acquiring critical technologies required for the development of RLV. The third and final test in the series of landing experiments (LEX-03) was conducted at 7.10 am Indian time from the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, Karnataka.

Landing done from a height of 500 meters

After the success of RLV LEX-01 and LEX-02 missions, ISRO said in a release that RLV LEX-03 re-demonstrated the landing capabilities of RLV under more challenging conditions. This time, instead of the height of 150 meters of LEX-02, its landing was done at a height of 500 meters and amid stronger winds.

Pushpak was released from Chinook helicopter

The release said that 'Pushpak' was released from a Chinook helicopter of the Indian Air Force 4.5 km from the runway. Pushpak reached near the runway and made a horizontal landing on the runway. This mission is a collaborative effort of many ISRO centers led by Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC). This mission has also received a lot of support from the Indian Air Force, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and Airports Authority of India. ISRO Chairman S. Somnath congratulated the team for their efforts to continue the success streak in such a complex mission. J. Muthupandian is the mission director and B. Karthik is the spacecraft director for this successful mission.

These organizations supported this mission

This mission received significant support from the Indian Air Force, Aeronautical Development Establishment, Aerial Delivery and Development Establishment, Regional Military Airworthiness Centre under Military Airworthiness and Certification Centre, National Aerospace Laboratories, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Indian Aerospace Industrial Partners, Indian Oil Corporation and Airports Authority of India.