NEWTOWN, Conn. -- For years, India struggled with its GSLV. Unlike the PSLV, the GSLV has not been established as a major player in the international launch market. The GSLV was plagued by a lack of a viable domestically built cryogenic upper stage (CUS) and a series of launch failures.
Initial launches of the GSLV used cryogenic upper stages that India acquired from Russia in 1993. India had also planned to acquire technology from Russia to build its own upper stages, but was barred from doing so by the United States. So New Delhi set out to develop its own CUS. After a series of failures, India finally successfully launched a GSLV with an indigenous cryogenic engine in January 2014. An upgraded CUS was used aboard a GSLV Mk III in June 2017.
In addition to struggling to develop a CUS, ISRO did not have a strong record of success with its early GSLV launches. Between the first launch in April 2001 and December 2010, only two of seven launches were completely successful. Following a launch failure on December 25, 2010, India temporarily shut down its GSLV program to complete development of its indigenous CUS and ensure reliability.
Since GSLV operations restarted in December 2014, India has conducted six launches without a failure. Slowly, ISRO has gained experience and confidence in its GSLV program. An upgraded CUS was used on a GSLV Mk III launch in June 2017. That year also saw two GSLV launches. With these successes behind it, India will launch two to three GSLV's per year going forward. The improved GSLV Mk III will supplement the GSLV Mk II initially, and will eventually replace the older launch vehicle entirely by 2022.
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