Axiom 4 mission set for launch, Shubhanshu Shukla to become India’s first space traveller in 40 years

Axiom Space, SpaceX, and NASA are set to launch the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) to the International Space Station on Wednesday, with a four-member international crew that includes India’s first space traveller to the orbital outpost in 40 years.

Liftoff is scheduled for 2:31 am EDT (12:01 pm IST) from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

According to SpaceX, weather conditions are 90% favourable for launch.

Shukla has officially joined the four-member crew of Ax-4 for the much-awaited launch, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said on X.

“NASA and Roscosmos have a long history of cooperation and collaboration on the International Space Station,” said acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro. “This professional working relationship has allowed the agencies to arrive at a shared technical approach and now Axiom Mission 4 launch and docking will proceed.”

The mission will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the crew in a new Dragon spacecraft.

Docking is targeted for approximately 7 am EDT on Thursday, June 26.

Once aboard, the private astronauts plan to spend about two weeks conducting science, education, and commercial activities.

NASA will oversee integrated operations from the crew’s arrival through departure. The mission includes five joint science investigations and two in-orbit STEM demonstrations in partnership with ISRO, reinforcing a space collaboration commitment highlighted by U.S. and Indian leadership.

Shukla’s participation marks a historic return for India to human spaceflight since Rakesh Sharma's flight aboard a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft in 1984. The 38-year-old pilot and test pilot from Lucknow was selected in 2019 by ISRO for India’s upcoming Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, now expected in 2027. He trained at Russia’s Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre and was officially announced as a Gaganyaan astronaut earlier this year.

Born in 1985, Shukla holds over 2,000 hours of flight experience and has flown aircraft including the Su-30 MKI and MiG-29. He was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in 2006 and promoted to group captain in March 2024.

The Axiom-4 mission is the latest in a series of commercial crew flights to the ISS and highlights expanding international collaboration in human spaceflight.