Gaganyaan Test Successful After Brief 'Anomaly', Crew Escape Module Touches Down

The test vehicle mission is the predecessor to the Gaganyaan programme which aims to send humans into space on a Low Earth Orbit of 400kms.

ISRO's unmanned test flight for its first human spaceflight mission 'Gaganyaan' today lifted off from Sriharikota, the first landmark in India's ambitious space mission.

This flight abort test was conducted to test the efficiancy of the vehicle's crew escape system, which will be used in case astronauts need to eject in case of an emergency.

"We are very happy to announce the success of the mission. The purpose of the mission was to demonstrate the crew escape system. The vehicle went slightly above the speed of sound, before it initiated the crew escape system. All the parachutes operate, and touched down at the expected velocity," Indian Space Research Organisation S Somanation said from the mission centre.