India's Private Space Sector Reaches Orbit: Skyroot's Vikram-1 Makes History
On July 18, 2026, the Vikram-1 rocket, developed by Hyderabad-based aerospace company Skyroot, successfully launched from the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) First Launch Pad at Sriharikota. The seven-storey rocket, standing 22 metres tall and weighing significantly less than traditional rockets, placed its payloads into an orbit approximately 450 kilometres above Earth within fifteen minutes of liftoff. The mission, named Aagaman (Sanskrit for 'arrival'), marks India as only the third country — after the United States and China — whose private industry has independently achieved orbital launch capability.
The Vikram-1 employs several advanced technologies that distinguish it from conventional rockets. Its engine, named Raman, was manufactured using 3D printing — also called additive manufacturing. Unlike traditional engines, which are forged, machined, and welded from numerous parts, the Raman engine's injector is fully printed as a single piece, reducing mass by half and cutting the number of components and lead time by 80% compared to conventional methods. The printing process allows for complex internal cooling channels that are difficult to achieve with traditional machining. However, 3D-printed engines face challenges such as porosity, surface roughness, and variability between batches; NASA has documented failures due to material degradation in printed copper combustion chambers. Thus, while the engine is faster to produce and lighter, it requires stringent quality control.
The rocket's airframe is constructed entirely from carbon-fibre composite, a material that offers high strength per unit weight — Skyroot claims a five-fold weight saving over the best rocket steel. This composite structure, similar to that used by the American company Rocket Lab's Electron rocket, reduces overall mass, allowing for more payload capacity. Vikram-1's first stage is India's longest single-piece composite rocket stage. However, carbon-fibre composites are expensive, require specialized curing infrastructure, and can suffer from hidden damage such as delamination, which is not easily detectable without ultrasonic inspection.
In architecture, Vikram-1 resembles ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV). Like both, Vikram-1 is an expendable four-stage rocket with a restartable liquid upper stage for precise orbital insertion. However, the PSLV is much larger (44 metres tall, 320 tonnes) and can lift 1,750 kg to polar orbit, while Vikram-1 is a 22-metre lightweight carrying up to 350 kg. The SSLV, designed for small satellites, has a similar staging layout but can lift 500 kg — more than Vikram-1's 350 kg. Skyroot's advantage lies in its all-carbon airframe and its use of 3D-printed engines, which enable faster iteration and lower production costs, potentially opening new opportunities for rapid, cost-effective launches of small satellites.
