The Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) has been postponed again, with the new launch no earlier than Sunday, June 22, according to Axiom Space. This marks the latest in a series of delays for the fourth private astronaut mission organized by NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX.
Among the crew is Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, an Indian Air Force pilot and ISRO astronaut, who will be India’s next space traveller to the ISS. He will join Peggy Whitson (commander, USA), Tibor Kapu (Hungary), and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland) on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The latest delay comes as NASA continues evaluating repair work in the Zvezda service module, an older Russian segment of the ISS. The mission was initially scheduled for May 29, but was delayed multiple times due to:
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A liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon 9 rocket boosters
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Ongoing technical issues with the Russian ISS module
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) also confirmed the rescheduling in a social media post.
Group Captain Shukla will conduct seven Indian-designed experiments, in collaboration with NASA, during his stay aboard the ISS. His inclusion in Ax-4 is a key moment for India’s human spaceflight programme, positioning him as one of the few Indians to reach the ISS.
Axiom Space emphasized that safety remains the top priority and that the mission contributes to its vision of developing the first commercial space station and expanding global access to space.
