Shubhanshu Shukla becomes 1st Indian to travel to space in 40 years

Shukla is the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station in the last forty years, only after revered Indian astronaut Rakesh Sharma. Sharma spent eight days in orbit as part of the then Soviet Union's Salyut-7 space station in 1984.

Shukla, who is an astronaut with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is accompanied by former NASA astronaut and Commander for this mission Peggy Whitson, and mission specialists Poland's Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, and Hungary's Tibor Kapu. 

The Axiom 4 mission marks the return to space for not just India, but Poland and Hungary as well. 

Before leaving for a historic journey to the ISS, Shubhanshu Shukla, who hails from Uttar Pradesh' Lucknow, said that he hopes the mission will inspire an entire generation of young people, much like the first Indian to go into space, Rakesh Sharma, did back in the day.

Shukla was born on October 10, 1985, Uttar Pradesh's capital Lucknow and is one of the four astronauts picked for ISRO's Gaganyaan mission.

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.