Hyderabad. Skyroot Aerospace, which recently successfully launched the country’s first private rocket Vikram-S, plans to launch Vikram-1, a giant rocket to put satellites into orbit within a year. The Hyderabad-based space startup also aims to reduce the cost of space travel in the future.
Company co-founder Pawan Chandna said on Monday evening, .. Now that we have launched the first private rocket Vikram-S, our next plan is to launch Vikram-1, a satellite-orbiter. It’s a big rocket. We want to do this within a year from now.
Skyroot also wants to be one of the first companies in the world to put satellites into orbit. Chandna said the company has raised around $68 million, the highest in the aerospace startup space in India. He added that Skyroot will continue to raise more capital in its journey ahead and would like to generate substantial revenue with the launch from next year.
Noting that space travel is currently expensive, he said his company aims to bring down the cost, make it affordable and enhance reliability. India successfully launched a privately built rocket on 18 November, which was designed by Skyroot. Thus began the entry of the private sector into the country’s space ecosystem, which is currently dominated by the state-run Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
