India has unveiled the shortlist of air force pilots who will fly on the country’s first human spaceflight mission. The four “astronaut-designates” were revealed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre. The selected pilots, Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla, are all test pilots. They have been undergoing training at ISRO’s astronaut training facility in Bengaluru. Three of the pilots will form the crew for the first Gaganyaan mission, expected to take place in 2025. The announcement comes as ISRO is making progress on the development of the rocket engine for the Gaganyaan mission. India plans to launch its first uncrewed Gaganyaan test flight before the end of the year as a step towards sending humans into orbit. Currently, only the United States, Russia, and China have the ability to independently launch people into space. India’s space program has been achieving significant milestones, including landing on the moon with the Chandrayaan-3 mission and launching the Aditya-1 solar probe. The country has set out plans to establish an orbiting space station by 2035 and put astronauts on the moon by 2040.