- Anil Menon will serve as flight engineer on ISS Expedition 75 in June 2026
- The mission will launch aboard Soyuz MS-29 from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
- Menon will support scientific research and technology demonstrations on the ISS
Indian-origin astronaut Anil Menon has been assigned his first space mission by NASA. Mr Menon will serve as a flight engineer aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of Expedition 75.
The mission is scheduled for launch in June 2026 aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft, alongside Russian cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. The crew will lift off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and is expected to spend approximately eight months aboard the ISS.
During the expedition, Anil Menon will support critical scientific research and technology demonstrations designed to advance long-duration human spaceflight and benefit life on Earth.
Who Is Anil Menon?
Anil Menon was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Indian and Ukrainian immigrant parents.
He graduated from Saint Paul Academy and Summit School in 1995.
He earned a bachelor's degree in neurobiology from Harvard University in 1999. At Harvard, he conducted research on Huntington's disease and later spent a year in India as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar supporting polio vaccination efforts.
Anil Menon earned engineering and medical degrees from Stanford, followed by residencies in emergency and aerospace medicine, and a Master's in Public Health from University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in 2012.
During his training, Mr Menon joined the California Air National Guard, supported remote wilderness races and served as a first responder in major disasters including the Haiti and Nepal earthquakes.
As part of Operation Enduring Freedom, he deployed to Afghanistan to provide emergency medical care. He was later transferred to the 173rd Fighter Wing, logging over 100 sorties in F-15s and transporting over 100 patients with the US Air Force's critical care air transport team.
He joined NASA as a flight surgeon in 2014. In 2018, Anil Menon became SpaceX's first flight surgeon and helped launch the first crewed Dragon spacecraft during the Demo-2 mission.
He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2021 and reported for duty in January 2022.
He completed two years of astronaut training and graduated with NASA's 23rd astronaut class in 2024.
Anil Menon continues to practice emergency medicine at Memorial Hermann's Texas Medical Center and teaches at the University of Texas.
He is married to Anna Menon, a SpaceX employee, and they have two children.
Anil Menon has received numerous awards, including the US Air Force Commendation Medal, NASA and SpaceX team awards, and multiple honours for academic and medical excellence.
