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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle) 🇮🇳 India Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Active · Last updated 2026-07-26Remove × | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | ISRO / Hindustan Aeronautics Limited | Gilmour Space Technologies | JAXA / Mitsubishi Heavy Industries |
| Country | 🇮🇳 India | 🇦🇺 Australia | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| Status | Active | In Development | Retired |
| Vehicle class | Small | Small | Medium |
| Propellant | Solid (HTPB, stages 1–3) / MMH-MON3 liquid (velocity trimming module) | Hybrid (Sirius motors, stages 1–2) / liquid (Phoenix engine, stage 3) | LH₂ / LOX (LE-7A first stage + LE-5B second stage) |
| Reusable | No | No | No |
| Stages | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| First flight | 2022 | 2025 | 2001 – 2025 |
| Payload to LEO | 500 kgas of [1]500 km altitude, 35–55° inclination. 300 kg to 500 km SSO. | 300 kgas of [1] | 10,000 kgas of [1]202 configuration (2 SRB-A3 solid strap-ons) ↑ Best |
| Payload to GTO | — | — | 4,100 kgas of [1]202 configuration ↑ Best |
| Height | 34 mas of [1] | 25 mas of [1] | 53 mas of [1] ↑ Best |
| Liftoff mass | 120 tas of [1] | — | 285 tas of [1]202 configuration ↑ Best |
| Success rate | 2/3 (67%)as of [1]First flight (Aug 2022) partial failure — satellites reached a lower-than-planned orbit. Second and third flights successful. ↑ Best | 0/1as of [1]Maiden flight 2025-07-30 crashed 14 seconds after launch (insufficient thrust), from Bowen Orbital Spaceport, Queensland — Australia's first domestic orbital launch attempt. Preceded by two scrubs (2025-05-15 electrical issue, 2025-05-16 fairing anomaly). A second test flight was slated for early 2026. Block 2 (1,000 kg payload) and Eris Heavy (4,000 kg payload) variants are planned. | 98%as of [2]49/50 successes. Only failure: F6 (Nov 2003, MTSAT-1R lost due to SRB separation anomaly). Retired after Flight 50 (GOSAT-GW, Jun 28, 2025). |
| Total flights | 3as of [1] | 1as of [1] | 50as of [2]50 flights from 2001–2025. H3 replaces it from 2024 onward. ↑ Best |
| Cost / kg LEO | ₹30–35 crore per launch (~$3.1M–$3.6M)as of [1]Total launch price, not a per-kg figure. ↓ Cheapest | — | — |
| Summary | ISRO's small-satellite launcher, designed for quick-turnaround dedicated smallsat missions. Full manufacturing, marketing and launch rights were transferred to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited in June 2025 under a technology-transfer agreement. | Australia's first domestically developed orbital launch vehicle attempt, using a hybrid-propellant first and second stage; the maiden flight failed 14 seconds after liftoff in July 2025. | Japan's flagship medium-lift rocket for 24 years, retiring after an exceptional 49/50 mission success record. Launched the SELENE lunar orbiter (2007), Akatsuki Venus probe (2010), Hayabusa2 (2014), SLIM lunar lander (2023), and the ALOS series Earth observation satellites. |
48 launch vehicles across 10 countries — active, retired, and in development — with primary-source citations from manufacturer user guides and agency press kits. Pure URL state: bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.