Sunita Williams On When She Will Visit India: ‘Going To My Father's Home Country…’

Last Updated:April 01, 2025, 08:14 IST

Interacting with media for the first time since coming back, along with Butch Wilmore, Sunita Williams said, "I hope, I think for sure I'm going to visit my father's home country."

Sunita Williams. (Photo Credits: X)

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams said that she looks forward to visiting India after her return to Earth following a 278-day stay at the Space Station. Interacting with media for the first time since coming back, along with Butch Wilmore, Sunita Williams said, “I hope, I think for sure I’m going to visit my father’s home country."

She also gave a beautiful description about how the country looks from space as she said that she will be visiting India “for sure." Talking about the incredible views of the majestic Himalayas, Sunita Williams said, “India is amazing. Every time we went over the Himalayas, we got some incredible pics. It happened like a ripple and flows down into India."

On her plans ahead to visit her father’s home country, she said, “India is a wonderful democracy, a great country." Sunita Williams also lauded India’s space programme and said that she hopes to meet Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is part of Gaganyaan mission and will be flying into space on another private space programme – Axiom-4 soon.

Shubhanshu Shukla, who is also one of the four astronaut-designates selected for India’s Gaganyaan mission, will become the first Indian astronaut to go to the ISS and the first Indian to go to space in the last 40 years. The mission to the ISS will be launched from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2025, and the mission crew will spend 14 days on board the space station. He earlier said, “Axiom-4 mission is very important for India, and it comes at a very opportune time. I am confident that the lessons learnt during the Axiom-4 mission are going to prove invaluable for our journey back home."

On the Gaganyaan mission, Sunita Williams said, “I hope I could meet up with them at some point in time and we can share our experiences."

Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were in the space for 278 days after the Starliner’s thruster malfunctioned although the NASA astronauts said they never felt that they were stuck in space.

Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)

News world Sunita Williams On When She Will Visit India: ‘Going To My Father's Home Country…’