25 June 2025, 02:08 AM IST NaN min SpaceX to launch Axiom-4 with Indian pilot Shubhanshu Shukla aboard; weather 90% favourable Axiom 4 | Photo: X/SpaceX Florida: SpaceX has confirmed that all systems are “looking good” for the scheduled launch of the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), as NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX prepare for liftoff at 2:31 am EDT (12:01 pm IST) on Wednesday. The mission, which marks the fourth private astronaut flight to the International Space Station (ISS), will launch from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. In a post on X, SpaceX on Tuesday (local time) stated that the weather was 90 per cent favourable for liftoff on Wednesday evening (local time). "All systems are looking good for Wednesday’s launch of @Axiom_Space’s Ax-4 mission to the @Space_Station and weather is 90% favorable for liftoff. Webcast starts at 12:30 am ET" SpaceX stated. Earlier on Tuesday, NASA confirmed the final launch on its official X handle, “With @Axiom_Space and @SpaceX, we're now targeting Wednesday, June 25, to launch #Ax4 to the @Space_Station. The four-member crew, including astronauts from @ESA and @ISRO, is scheduled to lift off at 2:31am ET (0631 UTC).” This mission holds major relevance for India’s space ambitions. The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will be piloted by Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Air Force, who will launch aboard the Falcon 9 rocket. For Group Captain Shukla, this mission is an opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to travel to space on April 3, 1984, aboard the Soviet Soyuz T-11 spacecraft. The Group Captain will now be rewriting history, as he is set to become the second Indian in space and the first to visit the ISS. The four-member crew, which has been in quarantine in Florida, will be commanded by Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and now Axiom Space's Director of Human Spaceflight. The mission specialists are ESA project astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. The Ax-4 mission will "realise the return" to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary, with each nation's first government-sponsored flight in more than 40 years. While Ax-4 marks these countries' second human spaceflight mission in history, it will be the first time all three nations will execute a mission on board the International Space Station. For ISRO and Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, this mission lays the groundwork for India's space roadmap, with the country's first human Space mission "Gaganyaan" scheduled for the first quarter of 2027 and to land an Indian on the Moon by 2040. ANI