India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. said it recently delivered a prototype crew module to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for launch on a test flight of ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark 3 rocket.
In a Feb. 13 press release, Hindustan Aeronautics said it had handed over the “Crew Module Structural Assembly” for the “Human Spaceflight Program” to ISRO’s Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram. The module will be outfitted with guidance, navigation and other systems in preparation for the upcoming flight of the GSLV Mark 3 rocket.
The GSLV Mark 3 is a new variant of ISRO’s existing GSLV rocket and is designed to carry payloads weighing up to 4 metric tons to geosynchronous transfer orbit, ISRO said on its website.
According to Indian press reports, the GSLV Mark 3 is expected to make a suborbital test flight this spring.
