IAF's Shubhanshu Shukla to Become First Indian Astronaut on ISS!

Soon, Shubhanshu Shukla, a group captain in the Indian Air Force (IAF) from Lucknow, will make history by becoming the first Indian astronaut to visit the ISS on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft from the space station in Florida.

As part of a collaboration between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Shubhanshu Shukla has been assigned as the pilot of the Axiom Mission 4 to the ISS. The voyage is scheduled to launch "no earlier than spring 2025," according to the US space agency.

According to the US space agency, Shukla will be the mission pilot while Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and Director of Human Spaceflight at Axiom Space, will lead the commercial mission. The two mission experts are Tibor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, both project astronauts for the European Space Agency.

According to NASA, the astronauts will execute a mission that includes outreach, scientific, and commercial operations during their 14-day stay in orbit.

Who Is Shubhanshu Shukla?

Shukla, who was born in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, on October 10, 1985, is a proficient fighter pilot with more than 2,000 hours of flight time. 

After enlisting in the IAF in 2006, he became a test pilot and became proficient on a variety of aircraft, including the Jaguar, MiG-21, and Su-30 MKI. He was chosen for astronaut training in 2019 and went through a rigorous training program at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Russia. Shubhanshu Shukla was promoted to the rank of group captain in March 2024. Shubhanshu Shukla is also the astronaut-designate for the Gaganyaan mission, India's own human space journey.

These astronauts are ready for their responsibilities in this historic trip, which intends to showcase India's human spaceflight capabilities, having received intensive preparation.