Overview

• The Ax-4 mission lifted off at 12:01 pm IST from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center with Shubhanshu Shukla and three private astronauts aboard Crew Dragon.
• SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Block 5 first stage executed a controlled descent to touch down at Landing Zone 1 in Florida, marking its 464th booster recovery and 52nd landing at the site.
• Shubhanshu Shukla became the second Indian in orbit since Rakesh Sharma’s 1984 flight, highlighting India’s growing presence in human spaceflight.
• The crew is due to dock with the ISS on June 26, where they will carry out 60 scientific experiments, including seven proposed by Indian researchers.
• Falcon 9’s human-rated variant has now completed 16 crewed missions safely and achieved 437 successful launches out of 438, maintaining its 100% astronaut safety record.