Axiom Space Names AX-4 Crew

Axiom Space to Include Astronauts from US, India, Poland, and Hungary in Ax-4 Mission to ISS

Axiom Space has officially announced the international crew for it’s next mission to the ISS. AX-4 will include astronauts from the US, India, Poland, and Hungary. Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson will command the mission. Whitson, who is now Axiom’s chief astronaut, holds the record among American astronauts and among women for spending the most time in space, 675 days. Whitson was the first female commander of the International Space Station and the only woman to serve as ISS Commander twice. She also became the first woman to command a private space mission on Ax-2 in 2023.

Meet the Ax-4 Crew

In addition to Whitson, the AX-4 crew will include Mission Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla from India; Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański representing the European Space Agency (ESA) and Poland; and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu from Hungary. Final approval for their flight to the ISS remains pending from the Multilateral Crew Operations Panel (MCOP), which includes representatives from NASA, ESA, Roscosmos, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency. This will be the first spaceflight for all of the crewmembers other than Whitson.

Launch

Ax-4 is planned to launch later this year, likely no earlier than October. The mission will head to orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft from Florida. The with crew is expected to spend up to 14 days on the ISS. This mission marks the second collaboration between Axiom Space and ESA, following Marcus Wandt’s participation in Ax-3. Wendt was the ESA’s first-ever project astronaut and the second Swedish national to travel to the ISS. Ax-4 will continue to build on this partnership by sending a Polish astronaut to space for the first time in over four decades.

The Mission At a Glance:

With the crew’s arrival in Houston today, they will begin a rigorous training program with Axiom Space, NASA, and SpaceX. The Ax-4 mission will prioritize scientific research, technology demonstrations, and the commercialization of space. According to Axiom, the mission will to foster international cooperation by sharing knowledge, resources, and opportunities, establishing participating nations as leaders in the rapidly expanding spaceflight community.

“Ax-4 represents Axiom Space’s continued efforts to build opportunity for countries to research, innovate, test, and engage with people around the world while in low-Earth orbit, This mission broadens horizons for nations with ambitious goals of advancing scientific, technological, and economic pursuits. Our collaboration with ESA for a second time and the inclusion of Hungary and India underscores Axiom Space’s ability to cultivate global partners, expand the scope of exploration, and open up new avenues to grow a global space economy.”

– Michael Suffredini, CEO of Axiom Space.

Commander Peggy Whitson agrees. “I look forward to commanding my second commercial human spaceflight mission with Axiom Space,” said Whitson. “With a culturally diverse crew, we are not only advancing scientific knowledge but also fostering international collaboration. Our previous missions set the stage. Axiom Mission 1 was the first all-private mission to the space station, Axiom Mission 2 launched the first Saudi female to space, and Axiom Mission 3 included both the first Turkish astronaut and first ESA astronaut to fly on a commercial space mission. Now, with Ax-4, we ascend even higher, bringing even more nations to low-Earth orbit and expanding humanity’s reach among the stars.”

Axiom Space continues to establish agreements to facilitate international collaborations in the realm of commercial spaceflight. In July 2022, Axiom Space and Hungary’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to further the Hungarian to Orbit (HUNOR) program and advance opportunities in space research and technology development. This was followed by a spaceflight framework agreement (SFA) in September 2023 to facilitate the launch of a Hungarian astronaut. Similarly, in July 2024, Axiom Space signed an SFA with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), in an early step towards a joint ISRO-NASA effort aboard the ISS.