India successfully tested a critical drogue parachute for its Gaganyaan mission, marking progress in indigenous spaceflight capability.

India's Gaganyaan human spaceflight program achieved a key milestone on February 18, 2026, with the successful qualification-level load test of its drogue parachute at DRDO’s RTRS facility in Chandigarh. The test, conducted by DRDO, ISRO’s Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, and other partners, simulated loads exceeding expected flight conditions, confirming the parachute’s structural safety and India’s ability to manufacture high-strength ribbon parachutes indigenously. The achievement supports the mission’s crew recovery phase and advances India’s self-reliance in space technology under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.