[FPSPACE] 2nd South African in space :) :)

[Keith Gottschalk]

      While US media celebrates the private sector's Alan Shepherd, South African newspapers put their own twist on it.

      This morning's Cape Times had as its front page headline "South African man's historic spaceflight" while ThisDay's front page headline was "SA pilot rockets into space history".

    We were told Mike Melvill was born in Durban, South Africa, and attended high school at Hilton College (this is a private school for millionaires' families). Melville's wife, Sally Smythe, is also a South African.

    Needless to say, our newspapers reported not a word on whether he is still a South African with a permanent residence visa for the USA - or if he has decades ago become a naturalised US citizen! If so, he could only be called an African-born astronaut....

   Like the two French spacenauts who were born in respectively Cameroun & Tunisia.

Keith