The launch of Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4)—the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station (ISS)—has been officially rescheduled to no earlier than Sunday, June 22, 2025, as per a statement from NASA and Axiom Space.
This adjustment allows NASA engineers to complete evaluations following recent repair operations in the aft section of the Zvezda service module aboard the ISS.
In a post on X, Axiom Space confirmed that the Ax-4 crew, which includes international astronauts, remains in pre-launch quarantine in Florida, ensuring strict adherence to medical and safety protocols. “The #Ax4 crew remains in quarantine in Florida to maintain all medical and safety protocols. The crew is in good health and high spirits and looks forward to launch!” Axiom stated.
The Ax-4 mission will lift off aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Florida.
The mission carries historic significance as it features astronauts representing India, Poland, and Hungary, with each country marking its first government-sponsored space mission in over 40 years.
For India, this mission is momentous: Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla from the Indian Air Force and trained by ISRO, will become India’s second national astronaut to reach space after Rakesh Sharma’s landmark 1984 mission.
The full Ax-4 crew includes:
- Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and Axiom Space’s Director of Human Spaceflight, as Commander.
- Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla (India) as Pilot.
- Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland) and Tibor Kapu (Hungary) as Mission Specialists.
Axiom Space underscored the broader significance of this flight, describing Ax-4 as realizing the “return to human spaceflight” for the participating nations, emphasizing deepening global space collaboration.
The mission’s delay does not dampen its importance as it prepares to make history, carrying not only scientific payloads but also the aspirations of nations poised to expand their presence in space exploration.