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Launch · Government, Defense & Space

Astrobase unveils India's first full-flow staged combustion rocket engine

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Astrobase logo
Date
Company
Astrobase
What it does
Reusable rocket engine developer
Kind
Launch
Based in
Bengaluru
Founded
2024
Sector
Government, Defense & Space

What they do

Astrobase Space Technologies builds advanced liquid rocket engines and vertically integrated launch infrastructure for commercial and strategic space missions

What happened

The Bengaluru-based startup unveiled EVEREST, an 800 kilonewtons full-flow staged combustion rocket engine running on liquid oxygen and methane

Why it matters

The milestone makes India the fourth country globally to pursue this advanced engine architecture, targeting a maiden orbital flight by December 2028

The details

  • Bengaluru-based Astrobase Space Technologies debuted EVEREST, marking the nation's inaugural privately engineered full-flow staged combustion (FFSC) rocket propulsion system.
  • The machinery generates 800 kilonewtons of upward pull in space vacuums while utilizing liquid oxygen mixed with liquid methane as its fuel source.
  • Management intends to build and evaluate roughly 20 units prior to launching its primary space flight mission scheduled for December 2028.
  • The business aims to set up manufacturing lines capable of turning out up to 50 propulsion units yearly to back heavy transport needs.
  • Financial backing arrives via IN-SPACe through its Technology Adoption Fund designed to foster domestic aerospace engineering.
  • The public presentation in Karnataka welcomed prominent sector authorities such as IN-SPACe director Rajeev Jyoti alongside air force astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla.

The bigger picture

  • Full-flow staged combustion stands as the most demanding propulsion design category, previously conquered by just a tiny group of nations worldwide.
  • Employing clean-burning methane instead of conventional kerosene cuts down carbon residue and permits faster recycling of booster stages.
  • India's expanding orbital fleet encounters severe transport bottlenecks, elevating native high-thrust propulsion into a vital asset for geopolitical independence.

About the business

  • Astrobase creates and fabricates reusable medium-lift rockets alongside high-power propulsion hardware entirely inside its own facilities.
  • The enterprise runs a 46,000-square-foot production and merging hub situated in Bengaluru featuring massive industrial additive manufacturing equipment.
  • It oversees a 21.5-acre engine trial ground close to Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh dedicated to non-stop cryogenic testing operations.
  • Its commercial model pursues a high-frequency flight network offering rapid launch-on-demand missions within a 15-day turnaround window.
  • The firm looks to expand yearly delivery capability from 100 metric tons during Phase 1 past 1,000 metric tons in Phase 2.

What happens next

  • Conduct full-scale hot-fire tests of the EVEREST engine in late 2026.
  • Perform stage static fire tests and booster hop tests through 2027.
  • Execute maiden orbital launch vehicle flight by December 2028.

The deal

Type
grant

Investors

  • IN-SPACe (lead) — National regulator supporting private space sector development in India through its Technology Adoption Fund.

Founders

  • Neeraj Khandelwal, Co-Founder & CEO
  • Devakumar Thammisetty, Co-Founder
  • Pavan Kumar, Co-Founder

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