Manila:India's private space company Skyroot Aerospace has secured a significant commercial contract from US-based Reflect Orbital for two dedicated rocket launches to deploy future spacecraft, following the successful orbital launch of its Vikram-1 rocket.
According to United News of Bangladesh, this deal marks a considerable step forward for India's emerging private space industry, underscoring the growing international interest in the country's commercial launch services.
Reflect Orbital is working on technology that uses mirrors or reflectors in space to redirect sunlight to specific locations on Earth. This technology aims to extend solar power generation beyond sunset, assist nighttime search and rescue operations, and provide light in areas lacking conventional infrastructure.
Skyroot stated that the agreement would enhance its commercial launch pipeline across its Vikram family of launch vehicles, adding to other missions already on the agenda.
Reflect Orbital co-founder and CEO Ben Nowack noted that a shortage of available launch opportunities had led the company to collaborate with a new provider. "There's a real launch capacity shortage right now. We're excited to work with a new launch provider, Skyroot, to help ensure access to space," he said.
The partnership with Reflect Orbital aligns with Skyroot's ambition to support advanced space missions globally, according to Skyroot co-founder and CEO Pawan Kumar Chandana. "Reflect Orbital represents the kind of ambitious global space mission the Vikram family is being built to serve. We are pleased to partner with Ben and the Reflect Orbital team across two dedicated launches, providing schedule certainty and mission flexibility," he stated.
Skyroot, founded in 2018 by former Indian Space Research Organisation engineers Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, aims to make space more accessible and establish India as a competitive player in the global private launch market. The company gained international attention in 2022 when its Vikram-S rocket became the first rocket launched by an Indian private company.
With the success of Mission Aagman, the maiden orbital flight of its Vikram-1 rocket, Skyroot achieved another milestone in July 2026, when the rocket successfully reached orbit on its first flight, making it India's first privately developed orbital launch vehicle to do so on its maiden mission.
This new contract is expected to bolster Skyroot's commercial prospects following that achievement, highlighting the growing role of private companies in India's space sector. For years, the country's launch capabilities were primarily led by ISRO, but a new generation of private firms is now seeking international customers and competing for commercial launch contracts.
Reflect Orbital's decision to book two launches with Skyroot signals increasing overseas interest in India's privately developed launch vehicles and their potential to support international space missions.