Indian Air Force (IAF) group captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to represent the country as the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft from the space station in Florida soon.
Shubhanshu Shukla is designated as pilot of the Axiom Mission 4 to the ISS, as part of a joint effort between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The US space agency announced on Thursday that the spaceflight will lift off “no earlier than spring 2025”.
IAF Group captain Shubhanshu Shukla said on Thursday he is looking forward to sharing his experience with “Bharatvaasis”, adding that he plans to take items representing the country on his spaceflight and hopes to perform some yoga poses aboard the orbital laboratory.
Who is Shubhanshu Shukla
The Axiom Mission 4 website describes group captain Shubhanshu Shukla as a distinguished pilot in the IAF who was born on October 10, 1985, in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow.
Shubhanshu Shukla was commissioned into the IAF fighter wing in June 2006. As a combat leader and seasoned test pilot, Shubhanshu Shukla has 2,000 hours of flight experience across various aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32, the Axiom website says.
Shubhanshu Shukla was promoted to the rank of group captain in March 2024.
Shubhanshu Shukla is also the astronaut-designate for India’s own humanspace flight Gaganyaan mission.
In 2019, Shubhanshu Shukla “received a momentous call from ISRO”, the Axiom website says, adding that he embarked on “rigorous training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Moscow, Russia-a year-long preparation that would shape his destiny.”
Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian to travel to space aboard the-then USSR’s Soyuz T-11 mission in 1984 as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme.
What is Axiom Mission 4
Apart from India, the Axiom Mission 4 or Ax-4 mission will “realize the return” to human spaceflight for Poland, and Hungary, with each country’s first government-sponsored flight in more than 40 years.
While Ax-4 marks these countries’ second human spaceflight mission in history, it will be the first time all three nations will execute a mission on board the ISS.
“This historic mission underscores how Axiom Space is redefining the pathway to low-Earth orbit and elevating national space programs globally,” the website reads.
Former NASA astronaut and Axiom Space’s Director of Human Spaceflight, Peggy Whitson, will command the commercial mission and Shukla will be the mission pilot, the US space agency said. The two mission specialists are European Space Agency project astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.
The astronauts plan to spend up to 14 days aboard the orbiting laboratory, conducting a mission consisting of science, outreach, and commercial activities, NASA said.