Historic Flight: India to Send Its First Astronaut to the ISS

The Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission, which includes India's first astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, has been temporarily postponed due to technical problems. The launch was originally scheduled for June 11, 2025, but SpaceX delayed it to fix a liquid oxygen leak.

This flight will be a milestone for India—Shukla will become the first citizen of the country to visit the ISS and only the second Indian in space after Rakesh Sharma (1984).

The mission has a multinational character: the crew includes representatives from four countries—the USA, India, Poland, and Hungary. For Poland and Hungary, this is also their first flight to the ISS in over 40 years.

The mission commander is Peggy Whitson (USA), the most experienced American astronaut. The crew also includes:

• Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski (Poland)—a scientist from CERN,
• Tibor Kapu (Hungary)—an engineer selected from hundreds of candidates.

The scientific program includes 60 experiments, seven of which will be conducted by Indian specialists. The research will involve 31 countries, making Ax-4 the most extensive mission in scope.

The new launch will take place after the issues are resolved. The crew will travel to the ISS in the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.