Air Force officer Shubhanshu Shukla to become second Indian in space with ISS flight this May

Indian Air Force officer Shubhanshu Shukla is preparing for a major journey. He is set to become the second Indian in space after Rakesh Sharma. If all goes as planned, he will fly to the International Space Station (ISS) in May. NASA confirmed this in an update on Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4).

Shukla, a Group Captain, has been named as the mission pilot. He will travel alongside former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, Polish astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, and Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu. This mission will be the fourth private astronaut flight organised by Axiom Space.

India’s Role in Ax-4 and Gaganyaan

Shukla was chosen for Ax-4 after being identified as a key astronaut for Gaganyaan. This is India’s first human spaceflight programme, planned by ISRO. Gaganyaan aims to send a three-member crew into low Earth orbit for three days. Another Indian astronaut, Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, is also designated for Ax-4. He will step in if Shukla is unable to fly.