The Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station, featuring Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, has been postponed due to a rocket issue. SpaceX has said a new launch date will be announced soon.
"It is understood that LOX leakage was detected in the propulsion bay during the test. Based on the discussion on this topic by ISRO team with the experts of Axiom and SpaceX it has been decided to correct the leak and carry out necessary validation test before clearing for the launch," ISRO said in a post on X.
Postponement of Axiom 04 mission slated for launch on 11th June 2025 for sending first Indian Gaganyatri to ISS.
June 11, 2025
As part of launch vehicle preparation to validate the performance of booster stage of Falcon 9 launch vehicle, seven second of hot test was carried out on the launch…Billionaire Elon Musk-owned SpaceX in a post on X said the delay is due to additional time required to fix a leak in the Falcon 9 rocket.
Standing down from tomorrow's Falcon 9 launch of Ax-4 to the @Space_Station to allow additional time for SpaceX teams to repair the LOx leak identified during post static fire booster inspections. Once complete – and pending Range availability – we will share a new launch date pic.twitter.com/FwRc8k2Bc0
June 11, 2025Initially set for June 10, 2025, this mission is significant for India as Shukla will be the first Indian in space since Rakesh Sharma's 1984 journey aboard a Soviet spacecraft.
Shukla, an Indian Air Force officer and ISRO astronaut, is one of the pilots for Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) on a private astronaut mission to the International Space Station.
This mission features an international crew comprising astronauts from the United States, India, Poland and Hungary.
The crew will travel to ISS onboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft which was set to be launched by a Falcon 9 rocket.
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