Space: Oxygen leak found in Falcon-9 rocket;Shukla’s Axiom-4 mission put off again
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: India’s second astronaut, Shubhanshu Shukla, the mission pilot, and his three copilots may have to wait more. Their Axiom-4 crewed mission has been put off again for the time being after SpaceX detected a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon-9 rocket.
The launch will be rescheduled once repairs are completed and range availability is confirmed, the media quoted Elon Musk’s company as saying on Wednesday.
The Falcon 9 rocket will boost the Axiom-4 crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) from the Launch Complex 39-A in Cape Canaveral, Florida, US. Engineers who detected the leak sought more time to repair it.
SpaceX announced that it was “standing down” from the Falcon-9 launch of the Axiom-4 mission to allow repairs of the liquid oxygen leak identified during the post-static booster inspections.
“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,” SpaceX said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
“Once complete – and pending Range availability – we will share a new launch date,” it added.
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) also confirmed it on X:
“Postponement of Axiom 04 mission slated for launch on 11th June 2025 for sending first Indian Gaganyatri to ISS. 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 pad. 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. Hence the launch of Axiom 04 slated for 11th June 2025 for sending first Indian Gaganyatri to ISS is postponed.”
Ahead of this historic mission, Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh spoke with Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla on Tuesday, extending his best wishes on the behalf of all air warriors to the entire crew of Axiom-4 for a safe and successful trip to the ISS.
As the astronauts’ community sent its good wishes to Group Captain Shukla and his crew fellows, he prepared to make history by becoming the second Indian to fly into space, nearly four decades after the IAF’s Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma did in 1984.
In a picture shared on X, the IAF chief was seen speaking to Shukla, through a big screen. Sharing the photo on social media, the IAF wrote, “As Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla prepares to embark on Axiom-4 space mission tomorrow, Chief of the Air Staff and all Air Warriors of IAF wish him and the entire crew of Axiom-4 all the best for a safe and successful trip to the International Space Station. This will add a new chapter to the Indian Space Odyssey.”
“Touch the sky with glory!” said the IAF.
India will take its quantum leap when Shukla will lift off for the ISS for the Axiom-4 mission aboard the SpaceX rocket and Crew Dragon.
As a mission pilot, he will fly with three other astronauts—Dr Peggy Whitson from the United States as mission commander, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary, both serving as mission specialists — as part of the Indo-US mission.
The spacecraft will lift off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida after it was postponed by a day due to bad weather, and now by the oxygen leak.
Group Captain Shukla, 39, is the youngest among the four astronaut designates trained under India’s Gaganyaan program. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), he was commissioned into the IAF on June 17, 2006, in the fighter stream. A decorated Fighter Combat Leader and Test Pilot, he has logged approximately 2,000 hours of flying experience across a wide range of aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32.
