Shubhanshu Shukla’s Axiom-4 finally set for June 25 liftoff after multiple delays

The countdown is back on. After weeks of delays, the Axiom-4 mission — carrying India’s Shubhanshu Shukla alongside astronauts from Poland, Hungary, and the United States — is now targeting a June 25 liftoff, NASA announced June 24.

Launching from Kennedy Space Center's historic Launch Complex 39A in Florida, the private mission will ride atop SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, with the crew tucked inside a brand-new Crew Dragon spacecraft. The mission is managed by Axiom Space, the US private company leading the growing commercial race to space under NASA’s strategic push to expand private sector capabilities in orbit.

Originally scheduled for early June, Axiom-4 has faced multiple postponements due to a combination of technical issues — including anomalies with the rocket and minor leaks discovered at the International Space Station — and unfavorable weather conditions at the launch site. The latest slot sets liftoff for June 25 noon IST, with docking at the ISS scheduled for June 26 at approximately 4:30 p.m. IST.

“The crew will travel to the orbiting laboratory on a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft after launching on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket. The targeted docking time is approximately 7 a.m., June 26 (4:30 p.m. India time),” NASA confirmed.

Once docked, the multinational crew will conduct over 60 science experiments, technology demonstrations, and outreach activities across their two-week stay aboard the ISS. For India, Hungary, and Poland, the mission marks a significant return to crewed spaceflight, further underlining the accelerating global democratization of access to low-Earth orbit.

The Axiom-4 mission exemplifies the new era of space exploration — one where private companies, nations, and agencies collaborate beyond political borders, with ambitions that stretch far beyond Earth’s atmosphere.