Proud Moment For India! Axiom-4 Mission Carrying Indian Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, 3 Others Successfully Lifts Off From Florida

Florida: After multiple delays, the Axiom-4 mission, which was scheduled for the International Space Station (ISS), was successfully launched on Wednesday. The Axiom-4 mission's SpaceX Dragon spacecraft lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

It is a proud moment for India as Group Captain Shukla has become the second Indian to travel to space after Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma. Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three others are travelling to the ISS.

Axiom-4 Successfully Launched:

The mission is organized by NASA and Axiom Space, and the four member crew, including Grp Capt Shukla, marks a major step forward in commercial and global space exploration.

Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will serve as pilot.

The two mission specialists are ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, and HUNOR (Hungarian to Orbit) astronaut Tibor Kapu of Hungary.

About The Axiom-4 Mission:

Axiom Mission 4 (Ax‑4) is a private spaceflight to teh ISS. It is operated by by Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX and NASA

"The Ax-4 mission will “realize the return” to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary, with each nation’s first government-sponsored flight in more than 40 years," the official website reads.

"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 International Space Station," it added.

Published on: Wednesday, June 25, 2025, 12:03 PM IST