27 Feb 2024
The mission will launch crew members into the 400 km orbit for three days before returning them via splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed on Tuesday the names of four astronauts selected as test pilots for ISRO’s first human space flight mission, Gaganyaan (G1). All four are Indian Air Force fighter pilots who underwent extensive training in Russia since 2021 and then at the ISRO facility in Bengaluru. These four have been selected from a batch of twelve sent to Russia for training in 2020.
Group Captain Prashanth B. Nair is a trained Sukhoi pilot from Kerela. He joined the Air Force in 1999, earning the prestigious Sword of Honour as the best-performing cadet. He also secured the first rank at the United States Air Force Air Command and Staff College.
Group Captain Angad Prathap trained in Russia for 13 months. Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla received training in space movement at Moscow’s Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. The mission should be launched between April and June this year.