Fighter pilot takes next giant step for India's space plans

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla blasts off into space next week as the first Indian to join the International Space Station (ISS), bearing with him New Delhi’s dreams of its own manned space flight.

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An airforce fighter pilot, 39-year-old Shukla is joining a four-crew mission launching from the United States with private company Axiom Space, aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.

He will become the first Indian to join the ISS, and only the second ever in orbit — an achievement that the world’s most populous nation hopes will be a stepping stone for its own human flight.

"I truly believe that even though, as an individual, I am travelling to space, this is the journey of 1.4 billion people," Shukla was quoted as saying by The Hindu newspaper this year.

Shukla said he hopes to "ignite the curiosity of an entire generation in my country", and "drive the innovation that will make many such projects possible for us in the future".

The airforce group captain — equivalent to an army colonel or navy captain — will pilot the commercial mission slated to launch June 10 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a joint team between NASA and ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organisation.

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