| Nr. |
Name |
Job |
| 1 |
Whitson, Peggy Annette (US) |
CDR |
| 2 |
?, ? (US) |
PLT |
| 3 |
Atasever, Tuva (Turkiye) |
MS |
 Ax-4 Crew: Kapu, Whitson, Shukla and Uznanski-Wisniewski. |
 AX-4 crew (in dark suits) gather with drink pouches shortly after docking. |
Description:
- Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) was a private crewed spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS) operated by Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX and NASA. The mission launched atop a
SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, which placed the Crew Dragon Grace spacecraft into low Earth orbit. Ax-4 was the first mission to fly aboard the Crew Dragon capsule 'Grace' (C213), which is
the fifth and final Dragon capsule manufactured.
- The launch was originally scheduled for June 11, 2025 from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, but was scrubbed for a liquid oxygen leak. A separate leak in the ISS's Zvezda
module led to an additional two week launch delay.
- The mission marked the first government-sponsored human spaceflight in over 40 years, and only the second overall, for India, Hungary, and Poland. Each of these countries previously flew
one astronaut as part of the Soviet Union's Interkosmos program. While those earlier missions docked with Salyut 6 or Salyut 7, Ax-4 was the first government-sponsored mission from any of the
three nations to reach the ISS.
 Axiom-4 rollout. |
 Axiom-4 approaching the ISS. |
Mission details:
On June 10, 2025, the launch of Ax-4 was postponed after SpaceX detected a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon 9 rocket during a post-static fire inspection. The mission was put on hold to allow
time for necessary repairs. SpaceX officially announced it was "standing down" from the launch to ensure the safety and integrity of the mission hardware.
- On June 12, 2025, the mission was delayed to allow the crew of the space station to investigate a new potential pressure leak. The potential leak was detected following leak repair and sealing
efforts by Russian cosmonauts in the aft segment of the Zvezda module, where multiple previous leaks have occurred. On June 19, 2025, NASA made the decision to stand down from a launch on June 22, 2025.
- Because of the multiple stand downs in close succession, Axiom-4 crew remained in quarantine for nearly four weeks, one of the longest periods in modern human spaceflight history. The standard
quarantine for astronauts is typically just two weeks, although the Apollo Moon mission astronauts were isolated for three weeks.
- The mission launched successfully on its third attempt on June 25, 2025 at 06:31:53 UTC (2:31:52 a.m. EDT). Grace docked with the ISS on June 26, 2025, at 10:31:47 UTC for a two-week stay.
- After 18 days at the ISS, Grace undocked on July 14, 2025, 11:15 UTC, commencing a 22-hour return back to Earth. The spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on July 15, 2025 at 09:31:36 UTC (2:31:41 am PDT).
- Axiom Mission 4 marked the first time astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary flew to the International Space Station and the first human spaceflight for each nation in over 40 years.
 Axiom-4 observation of the Earth. |
 Axiom-4 recovery. |
External links:
Astrophilately covers:
 Axiom AX-4 launch cancel Cape Canaveral. Credit: #411 |
 Axiom AX-4 launch cancel Merritt Island. Credit: #411 |
 Axiom AX-4 booster landing, cancel Cape Canaveral. Credit: #411 |
 Axiom AX-4 launch cancel Merritt Island, landing cancel San Diego. Credit: #411 |
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