Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla to be the prime mission pilot and Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair to be the backup.
New Delhi: In June of 2023, PM Narendra Modi, during his official state visit to the US envisioned a joint ISRO–NASA effort to the ISS (International Space Station). On Friday, August 2, 2024, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced Indian Air Force Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla has been selected as the prime astronaut for the upcoming Indo-US Axiom-4 mission to International Space Station (ISS). A Space Flight Agreement (SFA), has been finalised between ISRO’s Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) and Axiom Space, an American privately funded space infrastructure developer headquartered in Houston, for the upcoming Axiom-4 mission. The Indian astronaut was recommended by a National Mission Assignment Board.
Indian astronauts Shubhanshu Shukla and Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair will be joining the crew
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair were announced to join veteran astronaut Peggy Whitson and three more astronauts on the mission. This will mark his first spaceflight for Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla. He is selected for the position of primary mission Pilot while having Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair as his backup pilot. According to ISRO, the two astronauts will commence their training for the mission in the first week of August.
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla: Who is this Indian Astronaut
Shubhanshu Shukla’s journey with the Indian Air Force began 18 years ago at the National Defence Academy. He was 14 when the Kargil War broke out in 1999. This became a central moment in his life. The heroic tales of bravery from the Kargil War inspired a young boy from Lucknow to shape his ambitions.
Axiom-4 mission: A private spaceflight to the ISS
The Axiom 4 mission is set to launch in October 2024. The mission will last for 14 days. It is the fourth flight of Axiom Space, organised in collaboration with NASA. Operated by Axiom Space, the mission will be using a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The flight will take off using a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, from the LC-39 A of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Axiom-4 mission and India’s broader Gaganyaan mission
This collaboration with US-based Axiom Space is part of India’s broader Gaganyaan mission. The Gaganyatri of Axiom-4 mission will undertake selected scientific research and technology demonstration experiments on board the ISS as well as engage in space outreach activities. The Gaganyaan project ideates a demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching a crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3-day mission and bringing them back safely to earth, by landing in Indian sea waters. The Gaganyaan mission is an ambitious program aimed at establishing India’s human spaceflight capabilities. Four test pilots from the Indian Air Force; Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group
Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla were selected to be part of India’s first human space flight programme and were trained at Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Russia.
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