- Chairman ISRO terms it as a Diwali gift for the nation
New Delhi. 18 November 2020. Larsen & Toubro delivered the first hardware, a booster segment, for Gaganyaan Launch Vehicle to ISRO ahead of schedule in a virtual flag-off ceremony presided over by Dr. K Sivan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Notwithstanding the limitations imposed by COVID-19, the Middle segment of the world’s third-largest solid propellant rocket booster – ‘S-200,’ has been delivered ahead of schedule with Zero-Defects. The segment was produced at L&T’s Powai Aerospace Manufacturing Facility meeting the enhanced quality and timeline requirements for India’s maiden manned mission.
L&T is playing a vital role in powering ISRO’s Human Space Flight Program (HSFP). A trusted partner of ISRO for almost five decades, L&T has been involved in the production of a range of hardware for every mission of ISRO, including the acclaimed Chandrayaan and Mangalyaan missions.
The critical booster segment, with a diameter of 3.2 meters, 8.5 meters in length and weighing 5.5 tons, was jointly flagged off in a virtual event by Dr. K Sivan, Secretary Department of Space & Chairman ISRO and Mr. Jayant Patil Whole-time Director and Member of L&T board. This ceremony was graced by Dr S. Somnath, Director VSSC, Dr V R Lalithambika, Director DHSP and Dr S Unnikrishnan Nair, Director HSFC, members of scientific community across ISRO laboratories and officials from Larsen & Toubro.
Terming this maiden delivery as a magnificent Diwali gift to the nation, Dr K Sivan, Chairman, ISRO, complimented the ISRO and L&T teams and said, “both the teams have relentlessly worked on realizing the flight hardware ahead of schedule while maintaining the highest quality standards required for a Human Space Flight Mission.”
JD Patil, Whole-Time Director and Senior Executive Vice President (Defence & Smart Technologies), L&T said, “We felt honoured to be trusted by ISRO in this extremely critical space program, where best engineering minds and skilled hands of L&T are meeting the technological challenges with ISRO, its five-decade-old partner. We are confident that together with ISRO scientists, L&T engineers and technicians will fulfill aspirations of the Nation.”
The Human Space Mission: GSLV Mk III launcher which is ISRO’s heavy-lift launcher is identified for Gaganyaan mission given its requisite payload carrying capacity for launching an Orbiter module in a desired elliptical orbit. The S-200 forms the solid propellant booster for this launch vehicle.
