Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Air Force is poised to make history as India’s second astronaut to travel to space, nearly four decades after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma’s iconic mission in 1984. Ahead of the launch, scheduled for 5:30 PM IST today, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, Chief of the Air Staff, conveyed his best wishes to Shukla during a video interaction.
In a statement shared on social media platform X, the Indian Air Force said, “As Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla prepares to embark on the Axiom-4 space mission, Chief of the Air Staff and all Air Warriors of IAF wish him and the entire crew… all the best for a safe and successful trip to the International Space Station. This will add a new chapter to the Indian Space Odyssey.”
As Group Captain Shubahanshu Shukla prepares to embark on Axiom-4 space mission tomorrow, Chief of the Air Staff and all Air Warriors of IAF wish him and the entire crew of Axiom-4 all the best for a safe and successful trip to the International Space Station. This will add a new… pic.twitter.com/t91lFn6gz5
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) June 10, 2025
The Axiom-4 mission, organized by U.S.-based Axiom Space, was initially slated for June 10 but was postponed by a day due to inclement weather. Shukla will lift off aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule en route to the International Space Station (ISS), joining a multinational crew that includes astronauts from Poland and Hungary — each marking their respective nations’ first-ever trips to the orbiting laboratory.
This mission is particularly notable as it marks only the second government-sponsored human spaceflight from India, following the landmark voyage of Rakesh Sharma aboard the Soviet Soyuz T-11 mission.
With the Axiom-4 mission, SpaceX inches closer to its goal of achieving 170 orbital missions in 2025 — a record-breaking target with approximately 100 launches still remaining this year. As countdown begins, Shubhanshu Shukla’s journey to space promises not only to advance India’s human spaceflight capabilities but also to inspire a new generation of Indians dreaming of the stars.
