First Israeli Astronaut Boards International Space Station

In this NASA handout, A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft is launched on Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) to the International Space Station with Commander Michael López-Alegría of Spain and the United States, Pilot Larry Connor of the United States, and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe of Israel, and Mark Pathy of Canada aboard, Friday, April 8, 2022, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Ax-1 mission is the first private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. López-Alegría, Connor, Pathy, Stibbe launched at 11:17 a.m. from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center to begin their 10-day mission. (Photo by Joel Kowsky/NASA via Getty Images)

In a pair of firsts, 64-year-old Eytan Stibbe became the first Israeli to enter the International Space Station on  the first-ever fully privately operated mission in outer space. The adventure is reportedly costing him $55 million.

Stibbe, a former fighter pilot and three others lifted off on a Spaces Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 11:17 a.m. EST on April 8.