‘That’s my boy’: Creator of UAE astronaut plushie Suhail shares pride in seeing him float in space

‘That’s my boy’: Creator of UAE astronaut plushie Suhail shares pride in seeing him float in space

“I feel proud and happy,” he said in an interview with Khaleej Times

By Sahim Salim, Nasreen Abdulla Published: Sat 11 Mar 2023, 10:31 AM

When Sultan AlNeyadi introduced the "fifth member" of Crew-6 on March 2, soon after blast-off, the world saw a brand-new iteration of the astronaut stuffed toy 'Suhail'. This time the blue and white plushie had donned the official Crew-6 uniform.

"Allow me to introduce you to the fifth crew member. His name is Suhail, and it is the Arabic name for the star Canopus," Dr Al Neyadi said after lift-off.

At this point, down on earth inside the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center (MBRSC), one young Emirati man’s chest swelled with pride, and he turned to his colleagues to say, “That is my boy.”

Saeed Al Emadi, the designer of the plushie 'Suhail', said it was a moment of great pride to watch his toy float in space as an indicator of zero gravity.

“I feel I am proud and happy,” he said in an interview with Khaleej Times. “Sultan had told me that Crew 6 approved the design and that they would reveal it during the flight. When I saw it during the launch, I told my colleagues, that is