DRDO Makes Maiden Live Jump of High-Altitude Parachute AHAP

The correct answer is Nyoma (Mudh DZ), described as one of the highest-altitude drop zones. The jump was executed at 16,000 feet above mean sea level, the canopy was deployed at 15,500 feet and the landing was made at the drop zone itself, which lies at 13,700 feet. The exercise proved the efficacy and tactical employability of the parachute over extremely high-altitude terrain. Option A is wrong: Agra is where the designing laboratory sits, not where this jump was made. Option C is wrong because the desert range is not the site named for this trial, and the point of the jump was high elevation rather than open desert. Option D is wrong because the coastal test range is used for missile trials, not for a high-altitude parachute jump. Candidates should remember the three altitudes of the jump along with the name of the drop zone.

The correct answer is 16,000 feet. The jump was made from that altitude above mean sea level, after which the parachute was deployed at 15,500 feet and the landing was undertaken at the Nyoma drop zone. Option A is wrong because the exit was considerably higher than that figure. Option B is a careful distractor: that is the elevation of the landing zone itself, not the height from which the jumper exited, and the two are often confused in questions. Option D is wrong because no such exit altitude is recorded for this jump, although the system is cleared for use over a wide operational band. Static line jumps at these heights are complex and inherently risky because of the very high opening shock and rate of descent, which is why the maiden live jump counts as a milestone for the indigenous system.

The correct answer is the Ordnance Parachute Factory (OPF), Kanpur. The system has been designed and developed by the Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment at Agra and manufactured at the Kanpur factory; it is inspected by DGAQA and certified by CEMILAC, RCMA Kanpur. Option B is wrong because the aircraft maker is not involved in producing this parachute. Option C is wrong because that undertaking makes missiles and related systems, not parachute canopies. Option D is wrong because that company works in special metals and alloys. The division of work is worth remembering as a chain: design at Agra, manufacture at Kanpur, inspection by DGAQA and certification by CEMILAC. The Defence Minister called the successful maiden live jump another big step towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat.