India tests new spaceplane

Model shuttle could pave way for full-size reusable vehicle and cheap, regular access to space

India has successfully tested a hypersonic "spaceplane" model that could one day be scaled up into a space shuttle.

The launch took place at 07:00 IST on 23 May from the Satish Dhawan space centre, Sriharikota, in the coastal state of Andhra Pradesh. It was the first flight in the Reusable Launch Vehicle - Technology Demonstration (RLV-TD) programme being conducted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro).