Stratospheric Airship Platform

sfg-2026
ForumIAS LATEST
  1. 31 May |Post Prelims Meet with Ayush Sir | Offline Session to discuss the Post-Prelims agenda | ForumIAS Click Here to register for the event →
  2. 02 June |Open Session - The PSIR Mark Improvement by Aman Aloon (AIR 295, UPSC CSE 2025)|Click Here to register for the event →
  3. 04 June | Open Orientation for GSAP 2026| Click Here to register →
  4. 06 June | Open Orientation on Essay Guidance Program (EGP 2026) Click Here to register →
  5. 07 June | Open Orientation for Current Affairs for Mains 2026 Click Here to register →

News: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully carries out maiden flight-trials of Stratospheric Airship Platform from Sheopur Trial site, in Madhya Pradesh.

About Stratospheric Airship Platform

Source – PIB
  • It is a high-altitude, lighter-than-air unmanned system designed to carry instrumentation payloads to the stratosphere—approximately 17 km above the earth’s surface.
  • Developed by: Agra-based Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment under supervision of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

Key Features of Platform

  • It was positioned above commercial air traffic and weather systems.
  • It was launched with an instrumental payload to an altitude of around 17 km.
  • It completed the 62-minute endurance flight successfully.
  • Technology: The Platform used helium-filled envelopes for buoyancy.
    • The airships use propulsion systems, using electric motors, to maintain station-keeping or navigate over specific regions.

Significance: It will deliver telecommunications, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR), and scientific research at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellites.

Print Friendly and PDF
Blog
Academy
Community