12 IAF Pilots Shortlisted For India’s First Human Mission Gaganyaan
Mumbai: The Gaganyaan programme, an indigenous mission that would take Indian astronauts to space, was announced by the prime minister during his Independence day speech this year.
Progressively Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has been selected 12 potential crew members for India’s first manned mission to space ‘Gaganyaan’. Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadoria said on November 14 that astronauts have been selected professionally for the first manned mission Gaganyaan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described Gaganyaan as his dream project. The Indian Air Force (IAF) team is coordinating with ISRO and looking at aspects of spacecraft design such as life support systems, capsule design, as well as aviation medical cell ensuring that ISRO is successfully meeting with the objectives.
Under the supervision of the Russian experts, the pilots were selected and they proceeded to take further training in Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Russia’s Star City over last 45 days and 7 have completed their stint training so far. The remaining selected potential passengers would be sent for training when the seven astronauts will be returned. Four of these people will be selected as astronauts after a multi-step process. However, one or two of these would actually go on a space trip in Gaganyaan.
“We prepared 16 dossiers and presented them to a visiting Russian team headed by an aviation specialist…he was the topmost expert in the Russian team. We sat with them and assessed what we had done and unfortunately, only seven of the 16 could clear their assessment. The possible reason is that we came out with a lot of incidental findings which we thought were not very important as far as flying was concerned,’’ said Group Captain M S Nataraj, the chief election officer for the astronauts at IAM.
“Most of the people who were rejected by the Russians had dental problems which could have created problems in the space flight,’’ he further added.
Under a cooperation agreement signed in 2018, Russia is helping India with its first human space mission — specifically, selection and training, and supply of technical equipment like support systems for the Gaganyaan crew module. The space traveller can be up to 41 years old.
Gaganyaan is an Indian manned space mission. ISRO will send three Indians for a seven-day journey into space for the first time in this mission.
A human-rated GSLV Mk-lll will be used to carry the orbital module, which will have necessary provisions for sustaining a three-member crew for the duration of the mission. This mission is expected worth Rs. 10,000 crore and expected to be launched in 2021 and was approved by cabinet minister last year.
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