After Delay, Ax-4 Mission With Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to Launch June 19

The Axiom-4 mission, carrying Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station, has been further postponed to June 19, 2025. The update was shared by Union Minister of State for Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, in a post on X.

Singh confirmed that SpaceX, which is facilitating the launch via its Falcon 9 rocket, has resolved all technical issues that caused the earlier delay.

"Launch date of the Axiom-4 mission carrying Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station is, as of now, rescheduled for June 19, 2025,” he wrote.

"Also, the SpaceX team has confirmed that all the issues that led to the earlier postponement of the launch have been duly addressed," he added.

The mission had been temporarily halted after a liquid oxygen (LOx) leak was discovered during a routine inspection of the rocket. SpaceX had announced it was “standing down” from the launch to carry out necessary repairs, in coordination with NASA, Axiom Space, and ISRO.

ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan had earlier stated that astronaut safety and mission integrity remained the highest priorities.

The Ax-4 mission is historic on several fronts. It will see astronauts from India, Hungary, and Poland heading to the space station - marking the first government-sponsored spaceflights for all three nations in over 40 years. For India, this will be only the second time a national astronaut travels to space, following Rakesh Sharma's mission in 1984.

According to Axiom Space, the private spaceflight company behind the mission, Ax-4 represents a new era of international collaboration and will play a vital role in strengthening ties in low-Earth orbit research and operations.

Also Read: SpaceX Delays Ax-4 Mission Due to Oxygen Leak