Indian space startup Agnikul launches second privately built rocket in the country

BENGALURU (Reuters) – India’s Agnikul Cosmos launched its Agnibaan rocket for the first time on Thursday, powered by the only Indian rocket engine to use both gas and liquid fuel in the country’s second flight of a privately built rocket.

Agnibaan’s first flight was canceled four times in the last two months due to technical problems. The most recent cancellation occurred on Tuesday, when the launch was aborted five seconds before liftoff.

On Thursday, the customizable two-stage launch vehicle, designed to carry a payload of up to 300 kg (661 lb) into an orbit of about 700 kilometers (435 miles), flew for two minutes to an altitude maximum, or apogee, of 8,076 meters before falling into the ocean.

“All mission objectives of this controlled vertical climb flight were met and performance was nominal,” the company said.

The South Asian country’s space agency, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), has failed to successfully launch a rocket with a so-called “semi-cryogenic” engine.

“An important milestone as the first controlled flight of a semi-cryogenic liquid engine achieved through additive manufacturing,” ISRO said on social media platform X.

Thursday’s suborbital flight aimed to test the new engine and 3D printed parts.

Pawan K Goenka, chairman of space regulator India’s National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe), also hailed the “historic moment”. The Indian Space Association (ISpA) said the launch would “reinforce global confidence” in the country’s private space industry.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been pushing for the privatization and commercialization of the country’s space sector in recent years.

The first privately developed rocket in India, from the company Skyroot, flew in 2022.

Agnikul, whose name is derived from the Hindi and Sanskrit word for fire, was founded in 2017 and runs India’s first private launch pad and mission control center. All other launch pads are operated by ISRO.

(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, writing by Sakshi Dayal. Editing by Gerry Doyle)