Indian Navy and ISRO geared up for Gaganyaan recovery operations by carrying out “Well Deck” recovery trials late last week. The trials were carried out by Eastern Naval Command using a welldeck ship off the coast of Vishakhapatnam. Well deck in a ship can be flooded with water so that boats, landing crafts, and recovered spacecraft can be taken inside to dock within the ship.
Once the Crew Module touches down in the sea at the end of the mission, the crew have to be recovered in the minimum possible time and with the least discomfort. One of the preferred options is to tow the Crew Module along with the crew inside the well deck of the navy ship where the crew can come out of the Crew Module comfortably.
The trials for carrying out well deck recovery were carried out using a mass and shape simulated Crew Module Mock-up. The sequence of operations for well deck recovery of the Crew Module was carried out by the Indian Navy and ISRO during the trials. The sequence includes the attachment of the recovery buoy, towing, entering into the well deck ship, positioning of CM on the fixture and draining of the well deck.
This trial validated the overall sequence of operations, and ground fixtures and will help fine-tune Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). This trial is part of the series of recovery trials by the Indian Navy and ISRO to finalise the SOPs for recovery operations for nominal and off-nominal conditions.
Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla have been designated as India’s crew for Gaganyaan, the nation’s first crewed space mission. These four accomplished Indian Air Force officers, renowned for their extensive experience as test pilots, are presently undergoing rigorous training in preparation for the mission.
The manned mission is scheduled to embark, carrying a three-member crew into a low Earth orbit at an altitude of 400 km. The mission is designed to last three days, concluding with their return to Earth.
Team Bharatshakti
