Florida [US], June 25 (ANI): Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who will pilot the Ax-4 mission is one of the four astronauts picked for ISRO's Gaganyaan mission.

Born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Shukla was commissioned into the IAF fighter wing in June 2006. As a combat leader and seasoned test pilot, he boasts an impressive 2,000 hours of flight experience across various aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32.

In 2019, he embarked on rigorous training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Moscow, Russia--a year-long preparation that would shape his destiny. On February 27, 2024 Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled Shukla as one of the elite astronauts undergoing intensive training for India's maiden human spaceflight mission, Gaganyaan, scheduled for launch in 2025.

Shukla is excited as he prepares to pilot the historic Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) to the International Space Station (ISS), leaving an indelible mark on India's remarkable advancements in human space exploration.

'The way this worked out for me was that probably a week before we arrived at Axiom was the time I came to know that I would be going. I was extremely excited to be here. I was very, very happy, because this was a possibility for me to actually fly to space. You do not know how to respond to such things,' said Group Captain Shukla in a YouTube video posted by the Ax-4 mission.

Peggy Whitson, Mission Commander Ax-4 says Shukla has great operational capabilities.

'For me, having him as my pilot in the Dragon capsule is great. He already has that operational savvy, you know, he is just wicked smart when it comes to spacecraft technologies,' she said.

Group Captain Shukla will pilot a team including Whitson and Mission specialists, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary.

'The team that I am flying with on this mission, it is fantastic. I do feel that, you know, I have exceptional crewmates. I will have these crew members for this one flight, but post this mission, these are going to be my friends for life,' Group Captain Shukla said.

Shukla's mission is going to inspire an entire generation of young people, just like Rakesh Sharma's mission did all those years back.

'It has been an amazing journey. These are moments that really tell you that you are getting to be a part of something that is much larger than yourself. I can only say how extremely fortunate I am to be a part of this. It is my sincere endeavour through my mission to inspire an entire generation back home in the country. I want to use this opportunity to ignite curiosity among kids. Even if this story, my story, is able to change one life, it would be a huge success for me,' Group Captain Shukla said.

As Ax-4 takes flight from the Kennedy Centre it will mark a milestone for India's tryst with space. (ANI)