Confirmed! Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of IAF to fly to International Space Station in May - Check details

The Indian Space Research Organisation is all geared up to script a historic chapter in the nation’s space journey, with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Air Force set to become the first Indian to visit the International Space Station (ISS), said a PIB release.

Scheduled for May 2025, his journey aboard Axiom Space’s Ax-4 mission will also mark the first time an Indian has ventured into space in over 40 years — since Rakesh Sharma’s legendary 1984 mission aboard a Soviet Soyuz spacecraft.

The announcement came after a high-level review meeting chaired by Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who oversees the Department of Space, Science and Technology, among other key portfolios. The Minister hailed the mission as a landmark moment, one that showcases India’s growing integration into global space endeavours and its readiness to take on complex human spaceflight operations.

According to PIB, a highly accomplished test pilot, Group Captain Shukla has been shortlisted under ISRO’s Human Spaceflight Programme (HSP) and is among the top candidates for the forthcoming Gaganyaan mission — India’s first indigenous crewed orbital flight. His upcoming ISS mission is not merely a ceremonial step but a strategic one, aimed at equipping India with real-time insights into crew training, space station operations, microgravity adaptation, and emergency response — all vital components of the nation’s future in human space exploration.

ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, Dr V. Narayanan, presented a detailed overview of the agency’s upcoming plans, underscoring how this international collaboration fits into India’s broader ambitions. He noted that Group Captain Shukla’s participation in the Ax-4 mission reflects a maturing space programme focused on operational capability and strategic depth.

Dr Singh highlighted the significant momentum India’s space sector has gained, with several milestones achieved since January 2025. These include the public release of solar data from the Aditya-L1 mission, successful demonstration of autonomous docking and undocking technologies, testing of the most powerful liquid engine developed in India to date, and the historic 100th launch (GSLV-F15) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

Looking ahead, ISRO is preparing for a busy calendar of missions between May and July 2025. Among them is the PSLV-C61 launch carrying the Earth Observation Satellite EOS-09, equipped with advanced C-band synthetic aperture radar for high-resolution, all-weather, day-and-night Earth imaging. Another critical mission will be the Test Vehicle-D2 (TV-D2) flight, designed to simulate an in-flight crew escape scenario and validate recovery procedures at sea — a key component of the Gaganyaan programme.

June will see the launch of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite aboard the GSLV-F16, a major Indo-US collaboration aimed at studying climate change, Earth’s ecosystems, and natural hazards. The LVM3-M5 mission, scheduled for July, will deploy BlueBird Block-2 satellites under a commercial contract with AST SpaceMobile Inc., facilitated by NewSpace India Limited.

Dr Singh emphasised that India’s space progress is not merely scientific but also deeply aligned with the national vision of a technologically advanced and self-reliant nation. “India is ready for its next space milestone,” he said, noting that public-private partnerships and international collaborations will continue to be a core element of India’s space strategy.