‘Catastrophe averted’: How ISRO caught Falcon-9 fuel leak SpaceX missed before Shubhanshu Shukla’s flight

Recounting the tense exchanges, Narayanan said ISRO had asked SpaceX for test results after suspicious oxygen sensor data appeared.

In a startling revelation, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman V Narayanan said a fuel leak on SpaceX’s Falcon-9 rocket, slated to carry four astronauts including Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, was detected and fixed only because ISRO refused to take vague assurances and demanded full transparency.

Narayanan explained that SpaceX initially dismissed the anomaly as a 'minor leakage,' but ISRO’s probing forced the company to call off the launch just hours before liftoff. What was later found, he said, was no ordinary leak, it was a dangerous crack in the fuel line that could have caused a 'catastrophic' failure mid-flight.

ISRO vs SpaceX: How the leak was uncovered

Recounting the tense exchanges, Narayanan said ISRO had asked SpaceX for test results after suspicious oxygen sensor data appeared. But the answers were evasive.

“They told us committees have cleared it. Probably they thought it’s a minor leakage. But when we asked where the leak was, they said they couldn’t find it. When we asked the leak rate, they said it’s confidential. Out of 14 questions, only 2 were answered,” Narayanan revealed.

🚨🇮🇳 ISRO Chairman on fixing Falcon 9 issue before Axiom 4 launch disaster

🗣️“They thought it was a minor leak, but it was a crack in the fuel line — a risk that could have caused a catastrophic failure.”👇 pic.twitter.com/eWasY3rMBj

— Sputnik India (@Sputnik_India) August 21, 2025

Unconvinced, ISRO insisted on corrective action. The pressure worked. SpaceX was forced to scrub the launch on November 11 at 5.15 pm, just hours before it was scheduled. When engineers finally investigated, they found the crack. “If the rocket gave way, it was a catastrophe situation, nothing else,” Narayanan said.

Shubhanshu Shukla: First Indian astronaut back from ISS

The incident adds weight to the significance of Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s safe return from the Axiom-4 mission, which Narayanan called “a very prestigious milestone.” Shukla is now the first Indian to return from the International Space Station (ISS).

Narayanan, speaking alongside Union Minister Jitendra Singh and astronauts Shubhanshu Shukla and Prasanth Nair, hailed India’s progress: “In the last 10 years, our performance is phenomenal, exponential. Between 2015 and 2025, missions have nearly doubled compared to 2005–2015.”

What’s next: NASA tie-ups, G20 satellites, private sector push

Looking ahead, ISRO is preparing a NASA-ISRO launch of a 6,500 kg US communications satellite within the next three months. India has already launched 433 satellites from 34 countries, a number Narayanan proudly cited.

He also highlighted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s role in shaping India’s space diplomacy and startup ecosystem:

• The South Asia Satellite conceived, built, launched, and gifted to neighbouring countries.
• A new G20 satellite project for member nations.
• A booming private space sector with over 300 startups today, compared to just one a decade ago.

Since India’s first rocket launch from Thumba in 1963, ISRO has clocked 240 missions, 133 satellite launches, and 102 launch vehicle missions. But this episode underscores a new reality: India isn’t just a partner in space exploration, it is now a safeguard for global space safety standards.

As Narayanan put it, ISRO’s four decades of experience meant they could spot what others downplayed. That vigilance might just have saved the lives of astronauts, and rewritten the credibility of India’s space program on the global stage.