--- title: "Meet the Indian Astronauts Training for Gaganyaan" description: "Four Indian Air Force pilots are training to fly on Gaganyaan. Here is who they are, how they trained, and how Shubhanshu Shukla's ISS mission helped." author: "Sofía Cruz" published: 2026-11-04 updated: 2026-11-04 canonical: https://answers.mindstick.com/blog/1513/meet-the-indian-astronauts-training-for-gaganyaan category: "ISRO" tags: ["isro", "gaganyaan", "astronauts"] reading_time: 4 minutes --- # Meet the Indian Astronauts Training for Gaganyaan When India sends its first astronauts to space on an Indian rocket, the crew will come from a small group of highly trained Indian Air Force pilots. Their names were announced in February 2024, and one of them has already flown to the International Space Station. Here is a look at the people behind Gaganyaan and the training they have gone through. ## The four astronaut-designates On 27 February 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the names of the four astronaut-designates for Gaganyaan at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram. They are: - Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair - Group Captain Ajit Krishnan - Group Captain Angad Pratap - Shubhanshu Shukla, then a Wing Commander All four are experienced test pilots with the Indian Air Force. Test pilots are chosen for astronaut programmes around the world because they are trained to handle complex, high-risk aircraft, stay calm under pressure and provide precise technical feedback. ISRO has said that three astronauts will be selected to fly on the first crewed Gaganyaan mission. The final crew has not been publicly announced. ## How they were selected The selection process began years earlier. The Indian Air Force's Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Bengaluru screened candidates through medical, psychological and physical tests. Shortlisted pilots then went through further evaluation before the final group was chosen. Astronaut candidates must meet demanding standards for health, fitness, eyesight and mental resilience. They also need strong technical knowledge, because astronauts must understand and operate complex spacecraft systems. ## Training in Russia and India The astronaut-designates trained at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre near Moscow, completing a training programme there before continuing in India. Russia has decades of experience preparing cosmonauts, and India has a long relationship with Russian spaceflight, dating back to Rakesh Sharma's flight in 1984. In India, training has continued at facilities developed for Gaganyaan, including an astronaut training facility in Bengaluru. Training covers: - Spacecraft systems, including how to operate and troubleshoot the Gaganyaan crew module. - Survival training for different landing scenarios, including at sea. - Physical conditioning to handle the forces of launch and re-entry. - Simulators that recreate the experience of flying the spacecraft. - Microgravity familiarisation to prepare for weightlessness. - Medical and psychological preparation for confined, isolated environments. - Scientific and academic study. ## Shubhanshu Shukla's historic mission In June 2025, Shubhanshu Shukla became the first Indian to visit the International Space Station. He flew as pilot on Axiom Mission 4, a private mission organised by the US company Axiom Space, launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft. The mission launched on 25 June 2025 and docked with the ISS the next day. Shukla spent around two and a half weeks in space, conducting experiments and outreach activities, before returning to Earth in mid-July 2025. He became only the second Indian to travel to space, after Rakesh Sharma flew on a Soviet spacecraft in 1984, and the first Indian astronaut in orbit in 41 years. Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair served as his backup for the mission. ## How Axiom-4 helps Gaganyaan Shukla's mission was valuable for Gaganyaan in several ways. **Real spaceflight experience.** Training on the ground is important, but nothing replaces actually flying to space. Shukla experienced launch, life in microgravity, operations on a space station and re-entry. **Operational knowledge.** He gained first-hand experience of mission procedures, communication with ground teams and working with an international crew. **Scientific experience.** Indian experiments conducted during the mission gave Indian scientists experience designing research for space. **Inspiration.** His flight generated huge public interest in India's human spaceflight ambitions, especially among students. ## What happens next The crewed Gaganyaan mission depends on the success of three uncrewed test flights, starting with G1, which ISRO says is being prepared for 2026. If those missions go well, ISRO is targeting 2027 for the first crewed flight. The astronauts continue training in the meantime, staying ready for the moment their spacecraft is cleared to fly. Beyond the first mission, these astronauts are likely to play roles in India's future human spaceflight plans, including the Bharatiya Antariksh Station, India's planned space station, and the long-term goal of landing an Indian on the Moon by 2040. More astronaut candidates are expected to be selected in the coming years as the programme expands. ## The bottom line Four Indian Air Force test pilots, Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap and Shubhanshu Shukla, are training to fly on Gaganyaan. They have trained in Russia and India, and Shukla has already flown to the International Space Station on Axiom-4, becoming the first Indian to visit it. When India launches its first crewed mission, three of them will make history. Their journey shows the years of preparation behind every step into space. --- Original Source: https://answers.mindstick.com/blog/1513/meet-the-indian-astronauts-training-for-gaganyaan Copyright © MindStick Software Pvt. Ltd. This Markdown version is provided for developers, AI systems, and offline reading.