UAE Major Mobile Networks Change Names Today

Check the upper left corner of your smartphone screen and you’ll probably see something new: UAE’s major mobile networks have changed their names on Friday to mark another historic space adventure for the country.

UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi, who is currently on a long-haul mission at the International Space Station (ISS), is about to step out of the orbiting laboratory in a few hours for the first Arab spacewalk in history.

Counting down the hours until we pass through the ISS airlock into space. Wearing the spacesuit and proudly bearing the UAE flag on my arm, I will soon be undertaking the Arab world’s first spacewalk. Wish us luck! 🇦🇪✨ pic.twitter.com/nEkpPGZreK

— Sultan AlNeyadi (@Astro_Alneyadi) April 28, 2023

To mark this incredible milestone, both ‘du’ and ‘etisalat’ changed their display names to add ‘Spacewalk’. Subscribers are now seeing a moving text on the upper left corner — saying either ‘Spacewalk ETISALAT’ or ‘Spacewalk du’.

All eyes are expected to be on screens — and perhaps in the sky — by 5.15pm (UAE time), when AlNeyadi is expected to take the ‘giant step’ out of the ISS.

Dubai’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) also sent out an SMS on Thursday, encouraging residents to watch and be part of the milestone.