Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who will pilot the Axiom-4 mission, is one of the four astronauts selected for ISRO’s Gaganyaan mission.

Born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Shukla was commissioned into the Indian Air Force’s fighter wing in June 2006. A seasoned combat leader and accomplished test pilot, he has logged an impressive 2,000 flying hours on various aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32.

In 2019, Shukla began a year-long intensive training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Moscow, where he honed the skills that would shape his future. On February 27, 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced him as one of India’s elite astronauts preparing for Gaganyaan — the nation’s maiden crewed spaceflight — set to launch in 2025, reported news agency ANI.