Astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary blast off on a privately funded trip to the space station

India, Poland and Hungary launched their first astronauts in more than 40 years Wednesday, sending them on a private flight to the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — India, Poland and Hungary launched their first astronauts in more than 40 years Wednesday, sending them on a private flight to the International Space Station.

The three countries shared the tab for the two-week mission. Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the deal, put the ticket price at more than $65 million per customer.

SpaceX’s Falcon rocket blasted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center two weeks late because of space station leak concerns. The capsule on top carried not only the three newcomers to space — none of whom were alive when their countries’ first astronauts launched — but America’s most experienced astronaut, Peggy Whitson.

Besides Whitson, the crew includes India’s Shubhanshu Shukla, a pilot in the Indian Air Force; Hungary’s Tibor Kapu, a mechanical engineer; and Poland’s Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a radiation expert and one of the European Space Agency’s project astronauts sometimes pressed into temporary duty.

SpaceX Falcon 9 crew, left to right, Shubhanshu Shukla, Tibor Kapu, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, and commander Peggy Whitson in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Tuesday.Terry Renna / APThe astronauts are due to arrive at the orbiting lab the next morning.