Chandigarh, May 4: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Saturday evening successfully completed the maiden flight trial of its Stratospheric Airship Platform, marking a major milestone in India’s pursuit of indigenous high-altitude surveillance capabilities.
The airship, developed by the Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE) in Agra, ascended to an altitude of approximately 56,000 feet from the Sheopur Trial Site in Madhya Pradesh.
The unmanned platform carried a specialized payload, and data gathered from its onboard sensors will be used to refine high-fidelity simulation models for future missions.
The flight, which lasted 62 minutes, also included the deployment of envelope pressure control and emergency deflation systems to test their in-flight performance.
The system was successfully recovered after the mission for further analysis.
“This prototype flight represents a significant step towards developing lighter-than-air platforms capable of remaining operational for extended durations at stratospheric altitudes,” said Dr. Samir V. Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence Research and Development and Chairman, DRDO.
The trial comes as the Indian Air Force seeks to acquire three high-altitude, unmanned platform systems capable of sustained operations at altitudes near 65,000 feet for long-range intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO scientists on the achievement, noting,
“This system will greatly enhance India’s earth observation and ISR capabilities, positioning us among the few nations with such indigenous technology.”
Officials underscored that the flight test contributes to advancing India’s strategic goals in aerospace and surveillance domains, with future iterations expected to push higher altitudes and longer durations.
