Aiming For The Sky: When Shubhanshu Shukla Ran Away From Sister's 'Vidaai'

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will make history by becoming the second Indian to fly to space since 1984. He is part of the upcoming Indo-US mission to the International Space Station (ISS) and will fly on the Axiom-4 flight aboard the SpaceX rocket and Crew Dragon.

Group Captain Shukla's flight to the ISS is India's cosmic leap of faith. The journey from Lucknow to space began when he joined the National Defence Academy. Speaking to NDTV, Group Captain Shukla's sister shared a never-told-before story of how the officer joined the National Defence Academy.

December 11, 2001

Shuchi Shukla, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla's elder sister, was getting married. Relatives and guests were present for the occasion, but the next morning, on the day of his sister's 'vidaai', Shubhanshu Shukla was missing. His father, Shambhu Dayal Shukla, was furious, and the family members started looking for him. "Where is he...He should be here. Vidaai ceremony is ongoing, everyone was emotional," said Gunjan Shukla, Group Captain Shukla's sister. Later, during the day, he came home speeding on his bicycle and said, "I am here, now tell me what to do."

Young Shubhanshu Shukla, who was a teenager, was inspired by the heroics of the Indian Armed Forces during the Kargil conflict in 1999.

She said that we didn't know where he went, but a few days later, we found that he left the wedding to give the exam for the National Defence Academy (NDA).

"He didn't buy the form himself, it was his friend who purchased it for him...My father, mother, and no one knew when he left the house to take the exam and when he came back. He was 16 and he got selected for the NDA," she added.

The entire family was furious, asking him why he left the house on an important day, but he didn't lose his calm. Shubhanshu Shukla, who was 16 at that time, didn't seek help from anyone to drop him at the exam centre. Shuchi Shukla said, "I didn't even know he was missing. I got to know later."

His father did not stop him from joining the NDA. Mr Shukla said, "He was good in studies, and whenever I was angry, I would talk to Shubhanshu, and I used to feel calm."

The Indian astronaut's mother, Asha Shukla, told NDTV that he never used to go out of the house to play.

"He was brilliant at studying. He was never mischievous. There were no complaints from his teachers, they only used to praise him. But he never used to go out and play. He used to play at home with his sisters," Ms Shukla said.

Wearing His Resume On The Uniform

Shubhanshu Shukla graduated from the National Defence Academy in 2004 with a bachelor's in computer science and was selected in the fighter stream of the Air Force. He was commissioned on July 17, 2006, as a fighter pilot.

His father said, "When he (Shubhanshu) decides to do something, he puts in all his hard work and dedication." Shubhanshu Shukla then joined the Indian Air Force's Tactics and Combat Development Establishment (TACDE), where aviators are trained to be the "best of the best."

TACDE ( pronounced as 'Tack-dee') stands as India's equivalent of the renowned 'Top Gun' school, focusing on training the top 1 per cent of the air force in aerial combat and tactical procedures to produce elite fighter pilots and ground staff. He did the Fighter Combat Leader course at TACDE, making him one of the best pilots in the IAF.

He was later a test pilot with approximately 2000 hrs of flying experience. He has flown a variety of aircraft, including Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, BAe Hawk, Dornier, and An-32 transport aircraft.

In 2019, he was shortlisted by the Institute of Aerospace Medicine for ISRO's astronaut training group. In 2024, PM Modi officially announced his name as one of the four astronauts for the Gaganyaan mission.

Group Captain Shukla is part of the Axiom-4 mission as a pilot. He will join a crew led by Commander Peggy Whitson and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu.