Sultan bin Salman Al Saud

Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
Payload Specialist
Nationality Saudi Arabian
Born (1956-06-27) 27 June 1956
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Other occupation
 Fighter pilot
Rank Colonel, Royal Saudi Air Force
Time in space
 7d 01h 38m
Missions STS-51-G
Mission insignia

Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (Arabic: سلطان بن سلمان بن عبد العزيز آل سعود‎‎) (born 27 June 1956) is a former Royal Saudi Air Force pilot who flew aboard the American STS-51-G Space Shuttle mission as a payload specialist, and a member of the House of Saud. He is thus the first member of a royal family to be an astronaut, and the first Arab and Muslim to fly in outer space.

Early life

Sultan was born in Riyadh on 27 June 1956.[1][2] He is the third son of King Salman.[3] His mother is Sultana bint Turki Al Sudairi who died in July 2011.[4] She was a daughter of Prince Salman's uncle, Turki bin Ahmad Al Sudairi,[5] who was one of the former governors of Asir Province.[6] Prince Sultan is a full brother of Fahd, Ahmed, Abdulaziz, Faisal and Hussa (born 1974).[7][8]

Education

Sultan completed his elementary and secondary education in Riyadh. He is a graduate of the University of Denver with a degree in mass communications.[9] He received a master's degree in social and political science from Syracuse University in 1999.[1][2]

Early experience

Sultan bin Salman started his career in 1982 as a researcher in the department of international communications at the Ministry of Information in Saudi Arabia.[10] His tenure lasted until 1984.[11] He served as deputy director of the Saudi media committee for the Saudi athletes participating in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Later that year, the department of TV advertising was created at the Ministry of Information, and he was appointed its acting director.[10]

From 17 June through 24 June 1985, he flew as a payload specialist on STS-51-G Discovery. As one of a seven-member international crew, which also included American and French astronauts, he represented the Arab Satellite Communications Organization (ARABSAT) in deploying their satellite, ARABSAT-1B. Sultan also holds the record for being the youngest person to fly on the Space Shuttle, at the age of 28.[9][10]

Later, he assisted in establishing the Association of Space Explorers, an international organization comprising all astronauts and cosmonauts who have been in space, and served on its board of directors for several years.[10]

Portrait of STS 51-G crew

In 1985, Sultan recorded a commercial message that was broadcast on MTV during the Live Aid concert event. His message mentioned his recent trip on the Space Shuttle and was one of 33 such by notable individuals including Caesar Chavez, Coretta Scott King, Carl Sagan, Jesse Jackson and Peter Ueberroth. Sultan bin Salman served in the Royal Saudi Air Force beginning in 1985 and held the rank of lieutenant colonel.[10][12] He retired from the air force in 1996 with the rank of colonel.[13]

Patrick Baudry and Prince Sultan in 1985

Positions

Sultan bin Salman became the Secretary-General of the Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) in 2000 when SCTA was established.[13] His term of service was extended for another four years in February 2008.[14] It is claimed that as Secretary-General of SCTA, he contributed significantly to the improvement of Saudi Arabia's tourism strategy.[14] He is in fact regarded as the tourism minister of Saudi Arabia.[15]

Membership

Sultan bin Salman also holds the following titles:[2][10][13]

Views

Regarding the connections between the state and the people, he argued that “Every citizen of this country is a responsible person. Here the state is the citizen and the citizen is the state. There is no division between the leadership and the citizens.”[18]

Personal life

Sultan bin Salman is married to the daughter of Saud bin Faisal, the minister of foreign affairs of Saudi Arabia.[19][20] They have three children.[3][21] His son, Salman (born 1990), attended St. Andrew's University in Scotland,[20] and married a daughter of Prince Khalid bin Saud Al Saud, a great-grandson of Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman, in Riyadh on 5 December 2012.[22]

He enjoys gliding and skiing in his spare time.[10]

Prince Sultan owns a farm in Diriyah which is a model of modern facilities in a historical setting. His farm reflects his attempt to retrace the origins of the Al Saud family, and to document the Al Saud's claims over the Najd.[23]

Awards

Prince Sultan was awarded the Chancellor’s Medal by Syracuse University (SU) in November 2012 for his key role in helping to launch a collaborative partnership between SU and Princess Nora bint Abdul Rahman University.[24]

References

  1. 1 2 "Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz". Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiques. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Biographies of international astronauts". Space Facts. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  3. 1 2 "Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz". Official Website. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  4. ↑ "Princess Sultana bint Turki Al Sudairi dies". Arab News. 1 August 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  5. ↑ "Sultana, wife of Riyadh Emir, passes away". Saudi Gazette. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  6. ↑ "Sultana bint Ahmad bin Muhammad al Sudairi". Datarabia. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  7. ↑ "Family Tree of Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud". Datarabia. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  8. ↑ "Kingdom mourns loss of princess". The Siasat Daily. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
  9. 1 2 John Lawton; Patricia Moody (January–February 1986). "A Prince in Space". Saudi Aramco World 37 (1). Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud Payload Specialist". NASA. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  11. ↑ "First Arab astronaut makes a royal tour of space". The Windsor Star (New York). 20 June 1985. pp. B12. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
  12. ↑ Simon Henderson (1994). "After King Fahd" (Policy Paper). Washington Institute. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
  13. 1 2 3 "HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman". Prince Salman Center for Disability Research. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  14. 1 2 Abdul Ghafour,, P.K. (12 February 2008). "Prince Sultan Gets 4-Year Extension as SCT Secretary-General". Arab News. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  15. ↑ "Spotlight on the Saudi succession process". Al Arabiya. Reuters. 16 June 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  16. ↑ "Crown Prince receives Lifetime Achievement Award in the field of Urban Heritage". National Built Heritage Forum. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  17. ↑ "About Us". DANA Gas. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  18. ↑ Teitelbaum, Joshua (4 April 2011). "Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and "the Day of Rage" that Wasn’t" (PDF). BESA Center. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  19. ↑ Sabri Sharaf (2001). The House of Saud in Commerce: A Study of Royal Entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia. Sharaf Sabri. p. 142. ISBN 978-81-901254-0-6. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  20. 1 2 "Saudi Leadership Profiles: Prince Sultan bin Salman (5 January 2010)". Wikileaks. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  21. ↑ "Family tree of Sultan bin Salman". Datarabia. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  22. ↑ "سمو ولي العهد يشرف حفل زواج حفيده الأمير سلمان بن سلطان من كريمة الأمير خالد بن سعود". Al Riyadh. 6 December 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
  23. ↑ Joseph A. Kechichian (6 July 2001). Succession In Saudi Arabia. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-312-23880-3. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  24. ↑ Chapman, Ken (16 November 2012). "Saudi Arabian Prince honored by Syracuse University". CNY Central. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
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