No father could be prouder of his son than Saif AlNeyadi, father of UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi, the first Arab who flew to space for a long-haul mission.
Saif was a military man and it was he who inspired Sultan to join the service before becoming an astronaut.
Last week, the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) also shared a video of Saif reciting an Arabic poem he penned for his son. In a loose English translation, the poem reads: “I recited the Quran for you, to keep you safe on Earth and beyond/ Your education and perseverance guided you… Show your flag and pray/ You have a bright future and glory. Raise your country’s name up high…/I salute you and I’ll be proud of you for the rest of my life.”
Sultan and his family cannot call each other at any time because the International Space Station (ISS) is orbiting and the satellite connection may be out of range. But they can communicate. They have to inform the mission control to arrange the satellite call and there are internet-enabled laptops on the ISS that astronauts can make to do voice or video calls with their loved ones.