Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to become only the second Indian national to travel to space—and the first to visit the International Space Station (ISS)—when he pilots Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) on 10 June 2025.
The private mission, operated by Houston-based Axiom Space in partnership with NASA and SpaceX, will carry a four-member multinational crew to the orbiting laboratory for up to two weeks of scientific work, outreach, and commercial activities.

Crew and Mission Overview
Ax-4’s crew comprises Commander Peggy Whitson of the United States, Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of India, and Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary. Whitson—an ex-NASA astronaut who has commanded the ISS twice and performed ten spacewalks—will lead the mission, with Shukla serving as her second-in-command and primary pilot during launch, docking, undocking, and re-entry phases. Uznański-Wiśniewski and Kapu will round out a crew that marks each of their respective countries’ first visits to the ISS in over four decades.

Liftoff is scheduled for 12:22 UTC on 10 June (8:22 am EDT; 17:52 IST) from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre, using a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket to carry a Crew Dragon C213 capsule into low Earth orbit.
The spacecraft will dock at the ISS’s Harmony module (Zenith port), where the astronauts plan to remain for up to 14 days before returning via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near California.

India’s First ISS Pilot Since 1984
Shukla’s selection follows the 1984 flight of Rakesh Sharma aboard a Soviet Soyuz, when Sharma spent eight days on the Salyut 7 station. Thirty-one years later, India’s burgeoning space program is on track for its own crewed missions, most notably the Gaganyaan project slated for 2027, making Shukla’s Ax-4 seat a valuable stepping-stone.
The 39-year-old Group Captain, a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force since 2006, has accrued over 2,000 flying hours on MiGs, Sukhois, Dorniers, Jaguars, and Hawks. He was one of four IAF officers shortlisted last year for Gaganyaan, India’s first indigenous crewed flight, which aims to orbit three astronauts at 400 km altitude for three days.

Speaking during a virtual press briefing on 3 June, Shukla said, “It has been an amazing journey so far, but the best is yet to come. As I go into space, I carry not just instruments and equipment, I carry the hopes and dreams of a billion hearts. I request all Indians to pray for the success of our mission.”
He has trained since August 2024 under a regime managed by Axiom Space, NASA, and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), including physical conditioning, spacecraft systems proficiency, and psychological assessments.

Scientific Objectives and Experiments
During their stay aboard the ISS, the Ax-4 crew will conduct roughly 60 scientific experiments and outreach events. India contributed seven experiments, focusing on microgravity’s effects on biology and materials. Key projects include:
- Crop Seed Study: Investigators will examine how six varieties of crop seeds behave in microgravity, with post-flight cultivation on Earth to identify traits that could facilitate space-based agriculture. “This project aims to help understand how crops may be grown in space for future exploration missions,” said former NASA scientist Mila Mitra.
- Microalgae Cultivation: Three strains of microalgae will be grown in space to assess their potential as food, biofuel, or life-support components, helping select the most viable species for long-duration missions.
- Tardigrade Resilience: Known for their extreme-survival abilities, tardigrades will be observed in space to measure egg-laying, hatching, and revival rates compared with ground controls, offering insight into cellular and genetic adaptations.
- Muscle Atrophy and Treatment: Research into exercise regimens and possible countermeasures against muscle loss in microgravity aims to improve astronaut health during long-term missions.
- Ocular Health Study: Investigators will monitor gaze fixation and rapid eye movements to understand how extended computer use in zero gravity affects vision, stress, and overall well-being—data that could influence future spacecraft computer interface designs.

Whitson emphasised that Ax-4’s science program “not only advances basic research but also paves the way for future human habitats on the Moon, Mars, and beyond,” reflecting Axiom’s goal of expanding low Earth orbit access.
Training and Preparations
Since 25 May, the four astronauts have been in quarantine at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston to minimise COVID-19 risk before launch. They participated virtually in a pre-launch press conference on 3 June, where they introduced “Joy,” a white toy swan to be the mission’s unofficial “fifth crew member” as a morale booster and public engagement symbol.

Axiom Space’s Michael Suffredini remarked, “With Ax-4, we are demonstrating the value of public-private partnerships in space exploration. Bringing first-time nations to the ISS broadens humanity’s reach and fosters collaboration across borders”.
NASA’s Dana Weigel, manager of the ISS program, added, “Private astronaut missions like Ax-4 are critical to NASA’s vision for low Earth orbit commercialisation and will inform future endeavours, including Gateway and Artemis.”
ISRO Chairman V Narayanan highlighted the mission’s benefits: “The training and collaborative experience our astronaut gains aboard the ISS will be phenomenal.
“It strengthens India’s readiness for Gaganyaan and other deep-space efforts,”
he said, noting that India invested ₹5 billion ($59 million) to secure Shukla’s seat and training.

Significance for India’s Space Ambitions
Ax-4 arrives at a transformative moment for India’s space sector. With Gaganyaan’s crewed flight planned for 2027, followed by a proposed Indian space station by 2035 and a crewed Moon mission by 2040, Shukla’s ISS experience will inform astronaut training protocols, life-support research, and mission planning. “Even stars are attainable,” Shukla declared in a Times of India interview, inspiring a new generation to pursue STEM careers and dream big.
At home, student and public engagement events are scheduled to let Indians ask questions of their first ISS pilot “while floating in microgravity,” according to ISRO project director Sudeesh Balan. These interactions aim to foster space literacy and demonstrate scientific principles in action.

Looking Ahead
If all goes according to plan, the Ax-4 crew will dock with the ISS approximately 24 hours after liftoff, carrying supplies, research equipment, and personal items—among them, Joy the toy swan. During their stay, they will coordinate with ISS Expedition 69 crew members to manage payload operations, conduct experiments, and participate in live educational broadcasts. After up to 14 days, Crew Dragon will undock and re-enter Earth’s atmosphere for a parachute-assisted splashdown off the California coast. The mission is expected to last between 14 and 21 days in total.
For Group Captain Shukla, the voyage represents both personal triumph and national pride.
“I carry hopes and dreams of a billion hearts,”
he said.

“This mission is not just about me; it’s about India’s place in the cosmos.” As India watches, Shukla’s flight aboard Ax-4 will stand as a landmark in the nation’s ascent toward human spaceflight leadership.
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