UAE Astronaut Arrives Back Home After Spending 6 Months in Space

Emirati astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi arrived back home to the UAE on Monday afternoon after spending six months in space. AlNeyadi was the first Arab astronaut deployed on a long-term space mission and the first to complete a spacewalk. He was finally back on Emirati soil after spending six months aboard the International Space Station.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, vice president and ruler of Dubai welcomed the astronaut on his arrival at Abu Dhabi airport.

UAE Astronaut Arrives Back Home After Spending 6 Months in Space

After returning from space on Sept. 4, AlNeyadi spent time in Florida and Texas. There he was recovering and underwent medical testing, evaluation, and mission debriefs.

The Emirati astronaut, together with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, started the journey on March 2 in NASA’s SpaceX Crew-6 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The astronaut took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his excitement about returning home. “After returning to Earth, it is now time to return home. Our appointment is tomorrow.. I will see you well at Dar Zayed,” he said.

Ahead of his return to the Emirates, AlNeyadi shared a message with his X followers.

“From the start of the five-year preparations for the mission to spending over 180 days in space, this has been the experience of a lifetime, after returning to Earth, it’s time to come home. I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow in our beloved UAE”.