Dr. Sultan Al Neyadi and Maj. Hazza Al Mansouri received First Class Space Medals on Eid Al Etihad, the UAE’s National Day, during a ceremony at Zabeel Palace on Monday. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, presented the awards, with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, in attendance.
“As part of our National Day celebrations, we celebrated a group of the nation’s sons who contributed to the advancement of the space sector, established the UAE’s global position in this field, and contributed to shaping its future in this advanced scientific sector,” Sheikh Mohammed said on X. “Under the directives of my brother Mohamed bin Zayed, we awarded astronauts Sultan Al Neyadi and Hazza Al Mansouri the First Class Space Medal.”
Maj. Al Mansouri, a former Air Force pilot, made history in 2019 as the first Emirati astronaut. His eight-day mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS) marked the beginning of the UAE’s ambitious space journey. Dr. Al Neyadi, now Minister of State for Youth Affairs, followed as the second Emirati in space. Last year, he spent six months aboard the ISS and became the first Arab astronaut to perform a spacewalk.
