India has reported the successful launch and test of a mini-version of its Reusable Launch Vehicle-Test Demonstrator or RLV-TD, whose full scale version will be the world's first space shuttle since the United States retired its space shuttle fleet in 2011.

Once operational, India's space shuttles will compete commercially against Elon Musk's SpaceX space transport firm and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin for contracts to fly payloads into low Earth orbit (LEO). SpaceX has validated its concept of a recoverable first stage booster with two successful landings on a drone ship floating in the Atlantic Ocean.

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China has a secret space shuttle program called Project 921-3 but nothing has been heard of it recently.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) claims the rates for lofting payloads into space on its future RLVs will even be cheaper than rates being charged by SpaceX. It envisions launch costs of only $500 per kilogram compared to the current $5,000 per kilogram. ISRO considers the RLVs as its future space launch system.

The May 23 launch of the winged RLV-TD at 9:00 a.m. IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh was reported by the ISRO, which is responsible for India's space shuttle program.

ISRO said it spent just $14 million over a five-year period to build the 1,542 kilogram space shuttle model that is nine meters long.

The test shuttle was hurtled 70 kilometers into the atmosphere atop a 10 tonne rocket before being destroyed after it crashed 10 minutes later into the Bay of Bengal some 500 kilometers from the launch pad.

"In subsequent test flights, we will attempt to land the reusable vehicle at a specific location on land like an aircraft does on a runway so that we can again use it for launching more satellites," said ISRO director K. Sivan.

He said the Monday launch will enable ISRO to collect data on hypersonic speed, autonomous landing and other useful information.

RLV-TD is ISRO's first step at making a two-stage reusable launch vehicle. Its concept is similar to that of the U.S. Space Shuttle program: an RLV will be mounted atop a booster that will launch the shuttle into orbit.

ISRO, however, is developing its RLV technology for a two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) capability. The first stage will be powered by a semi cryogenic winged booster capable of flying back and landing on a runway like a conventional aircraft after burnout.

The second stage will be the cryogenic. It will deliver the satellite into orbit, de-orbit and re-enter the atmosphere and parachute down to a soft landing on balloons.

TagsIndia, Reusable Launch Vehicle-Test Demonstrator, RLV-TD, Indian Space Research Organization, ISRO