WEBDESK: While Indian media is celebrating India’s Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s take off off into space as part of the Axiom-4 mission, launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 2:31 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, some are quietly asking whether this milestone truly warrants such high praise.
Organised by Texas-based Axiom Space in collaboration with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, the mission features a four-member international crew travelling aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule mounted on a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket.
Originally scheduled for May 29, it was pushed back due to issues ranging from technical problems with the launch vehicle to complications aboard the ISS, particularly related to pressure variations in the ageing Zvezda module.
The leak in Zvezda has been under investigation since 2019, with key repairs carried out ahead of the current mission.
While Indian media has been quick to celebrate the event as a major achievement, some are quietly asking whether this milestone truly warrants such high praise.
After all, Axiom’s private missions are expensive, and access to a seat on board depends also on deep pockets rather than decades of training or scientific distinction.
In this light, some question whether Shukla’s flight is genuinely a symbol of national progress, or simply a high-priced ticket to space that a well-connected individual could buy their way into.
Nevertheless, so far, most people are persisting in drinking the glass half full, rejoicing at the arrival of an Indian on a NASA mission.
Axiom’s fourth Private Space Mission: A billionaire’s shortcut to the stars
When Axiom Space launched its fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on June 25, 2025, it proudly touted the event as another “historic” leap in commercial spaceflight.
The Ax-4 mission, featuring crew members from the US, Hungary, Poland, and India, was dressed in the language of international cooperation and space democratization. But scratch beneath the surface and the picture is far less inspiring.
Despite the branding, Axiom’s private missions are not milestones of inclusion, they are reminders that in the modern space age, access to orbit is no longer about excellence, it’s about affluence.
Pay-to-Fly: The real gateway to space
Axiom’s missions are marketed as ground-breaking opportunities to expand human presence in space. In reality, they are available almost exclusively to those who can afford the $55–70 million price tag per seat. The figure covers transportation aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, lodging on the ISS, and a short, compressed training regime.
This isn’t a new astronaut class; it’s a club for the ultra-wealthy, masked as a private-sector revolution.
Who gets in: Scientists or sponsors?
While Axiom missions often include a former NASA astronaut as commander (a NASA requirement), the rest of the crew tends to be:
- Tailored for people with limited technical backgrounds
- There is no expectation of conducting meaningful spacewalks or long-duration missions.
- The objective is not mastery, it’s minimal viability, enough to meet NASA’s liability standards and preserve the optics.
Training: Just enough to avoid catastrophe
Axiom’s astronauts undergo a training regime coordinated with NASA, but it’s no secret that this isn’t the same program that traditional astronauts endure.
- The private training schedule is:
- Condensed in a few months
- Largely focused on safety protocols
Tailored for people with limited technical backgroundsThere is no expectation of conducting meaningful spacewalks or long-duration missions. The objective is not mastery, it’s minimal viability, enough to meet NASA’s liability standards and preserve the optics.
Privatizing the final frontier
The Ax 4 mission underscores a broader shift in space exploration: from public missions for shared progress to corporate charters for elite experiences.
Axiom’s private astronauts are not expanding the human frontier. They are purchasing access to what was once the domain of collective ambition.
Even the inclusion of astronauts from Poland and Hungary, while noteworthy on paper, is arguably more about geopolitical signalling than scientific pursuit.
In essence, these missions allow countries with enough cash or partnerships to rent a presence in orbit no real infrastructure, no long-term program, just a flag and a photo op.
The Fourth Axiom Mission should not be confused with a revolution in human spaceflight.
It’s a high-priced demonstration of how money now bypasses merit in humanity’s reach for the stars.
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