Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Air Force created historical past on Thursday afternoon (June 26, 2025) by changing into the primary Indian to enter the International Space Station.
As the Dragon crew capsule carrying Group Captain Shukla and three different astronauts as a part of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) circled earth, he greeted individuals again dwelling with a “Namaskar from space”. The spacecraft then docked with the ISS at 4.01 p.m. IST because it handed over the north Atlantic Ocean.
For Group Captain Shukla, this is step one to a extra bold mission as he is among the 4 astronauts designated to participate in Gaganyaan, India’s first human spaceflight mission. The Indian Space Research Organisation, which expects to conduct the primary crewed flight below this mission no sooner than 2026, paid greater than ₹500 crore for the Ax-4 mission to incorporate Group Captain Shukla and Prasanth Nair, one other Gaganyaan designate who was a part of the back-up crew for the Ax-4 mission.
On Thursday’s (June 26, 2025) flight, Group Captain Shukla was the mission pilot. A reside videolink from NASA confirmed the spacecraft approaching the station, with the docking sequence being accomplished at 4.15 p.m. At the lift-off on Wednesday night (June 25, 2025) from Florida, Axiom Space — which is orchestrating the mission — had mentioned the capsule would try docking in about 28 hours.
“Shubhanshu stands at the threshold entrance of International Space Station… as the world watches with excitement and expectation,” Union Minister of State for Space Jitendra Singh wrote in a publish on X.
The 4 astronauts aboard will spend the following two weeks at the ISS conducting scientific experiments, together with eight from ISRO, and serving to with the station’s repairs.
Axiom Space had focused a May 29, 2025 launch date for Ax-4 however needed to postpone it a number of instances.
