Advanced Propellant Tank Production and CNC Machining facilities at state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL) Aerospace Division were inaugurated by S Somanath, Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) today. These new facilities are set to significantly enhance ISRO’s capacity to meet its growing production demands, particularly for the Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3), India’s heaviest and most powerful rocket

Currently, ISRO can only launch two LVM3 rockets per year, but the new facilities will enable HAL to manufacture enough critical components to support six launches annually, closing the production gap.

The event was attended by CB Ananthakrishnan, CMD (Addl. Charge) of HAL, and senior officers from ISRO and HAL.

Somanath praised HAL’s capabilities, noting that its vast potential should be harnessed for the benefit of both organizations. He emphasized that HAL will play a crucial role in ISRO’s future missions and should focus on emerging technologies, design challenges, and end-to-end tasks to alleviate pressure on ISRO.

Ananthakrishnan highlighted that the ongoing collaboration with ISRO will expedite human spaceflight missions and the development of Next-Generation Launch Vehicles (NGLV). He pointed out that there are significant opportunities for HAL to work with ISRO and expressed HAL’s commitment to investing further to maximize its potential in space programs. “The day is not far off when space becomes an important vertical of HAL,” he added.

During the program, the first Gaganyaan Service Module and LVM3 ½ U Isogrid Version Hardware were symbolically handed over to ISRO.

All you want to know about the new facilities

The Propellant Tank Production Facility will specialize in manufacturing high-performance fuel and oxidizer tanks, which are critical components for the LVM3 launch vehicle, with dimensions of up to 4 meters in diameter and 15 meters in length.

The CNC Machining Facility features advanced Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines capable of high-precision fabrication of 4.5-meter class Rings and Propellant Tank Domes for the LVM3.

The inauguration was attended by Dr V Narayanan, Director of Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC); M. Mohan, Director of Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC); Mihir Kanti Mishra, Chief Executive Officer of HAL’s Bangalore Complex; and S Anbuvelan, Chief Executive Officer of HAL’s Helicopter Complex.