CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: In a landmark flight for three nations and a veteran U.S. spacefarer, a four-member astronaut crew launched into orbit early this week aboard a SpaceX rocket, bound for the International Space Station (ISS) on a two-week mission organized by private space company Axiom Space.

Lifting off at 2:30 a.m. EDT from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the crew includes astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary, all making their first trip to the ISS. Leading the mission is Peggy Whitson, a retired NASA astronaut and the first woman to command the space station, now flying her fifth space mission.

"This is an incredible ride uphill," Whitson said over the radio to SpaceX's mission control in California, as the Crew Dragon capsule separated from the Falcon 9 rocket's upper stage roughly nine minutes after launch.

The mission, known as Axiom 4, was arranged by Texas-based Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX. The capsule—nicknamed "Grace" by the crew—marks the fifth addition to SpaceX's fleet of Crew Dragons and was making its debut flight.

The launch also comes just weeks after a brief political dust-up, when Elon Musk threatened to pull Crew Dragon out of service following tensions with President Donald Trump over federal contracts. That dispute appears to have had no bearing on the mission itself.

Whitson, 65, is joined by Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and Tibor Kapu of Hungary. All three are flying under agreements between Axiom and their respective governments, with national space agencies viewing the mission as a stepping stone toward future independent crewed spaceflight efforts.

For India, the flight is seen as a precursor to its first planned human spaceflight under the Gaganyaan program, expected in 2027.

The Crew Dragon spacecraft is expected to dock with the ISS about 28 hours after launch, orbiting approximately 250 miles (400 km) above Earth. Once aboard, the Axiom 4 crew will join seven current station residents and conduct microgravity research during their 14-day stay.

Axiom Space has now flown four such missions since 2022 as part of its commercial strategy to support international astronauts and private clients. The Houston-based company, co-founded by a former NASA ISS program manager, is also developing its commercial space station to succeed the ISS, which NASA plans to retire by 2030.

This launch marked SpaceX's 18th human spaceflight, continuing a five-year run since it became the first private company to carry American astronauts to space after the retirement of NASA's shuttle program in 2011.

In addition to operating the launch site, NASA assumes responsibility for the astronauts once they reach and dock with the ISS.

For Whitson—who has already logged a record-setting 675 days in space—this mission adds yet another chapter to a trailblazing career that helped redefine human spaceflight for future generations.