Journey from Bağcılar to space

Space and aircraft technician Samet Saray, who was involved in the production stage of the Dragon capsule that took the first Turkish astronaut Alper Gezeravcı to space, was a guest of Bağcılar Municipality. Saray, who shared his journey from Bağcılar to space, stated, ‘Flying vehicles will become a part of our lives and I believe we will start to see them from 2028 onwards.’Bağcılar Anatolian Vocational and Technical High School graduate space and aircraft technician Samet Saray made a name for himself alongside the first Turkish astronaut Alper Gezeravcı. Saray had a role in the production stage of the Dragon capsule owned by SpaceX, which carried Gezeravcı to space. Especially admired by the youth, Saray was a guest on the program named ‘From Bağcılar to Space’ organized by Bağcılar Municipality. Saray answered questions about space and career asked by the youth at the event. Bağcılar Mayor Abdullah Özdemir, Saray’s father, mother, wife, and son also attended the program, which attracted great interest from the youth.Saray spent the years 2002-2007 in BağcılarSaray, who attended high school in Bağcılar, spent his life in this area between 2002 and 2007. Graduating from Bağcılar Anatolian Vocational and Technical High School Aircraft Electronics and Technician Department, Saray later received education in the Industrial Electronics program at Istanbul Technical University Vocational School. Working in many companies both domestically and internationally, Saray is currently actively involved in the 100% electric flying vehicle project at Supernal. Saray, who estimates that flying vehicles will be seen in everyday life in approximately 4 years, compares their design to a mix of a helicopter, an airplane, and TOGG.’Jetsons will become a part of our lives’Saray stated that we will start to see Jetsons from 2028 onwards and mentioned that there are pilot cities in the world such as Dubai, New York, and Los Angeles on this subject. Saray, suggesting that Istanbul might be the first place to see flying vehicles in Turkey, said, ‘Flying vehicles will enter our lives like a taxi, shared by passengers, and I believe they will eventually descend to individuals. The sky will be much more crowded in our lives within 10 years.”Never give up’Encouraging young people to persist in their technological studies, Saray said, ‘You will continue your tests, you will never give up. Perhaps by using various sensors, recording devices, placing these sensors in the right places so that you can have detailed information about what caused the failures in previous launches where you failed.’ ‘Get involved with artificial intelligence’Saray mentioned that young people are catching up with technology from a much higher level and advised, ‘I can recommend you to get more involved with artificial intelligence to reach better levels faster. Because we are not aware of how serious artificial intelligence has come right now. But just like how the internet changed people’s lives when it was discovered, that transition or mobile phones, smart devices, now artificial intelligence is coming more seriously. You can focus on that. Never be pessimistic about these issues. Some movies portray things like robots taking over our lives. No, this is a very good thing and we young people are very smart. I believe we have the potential to do better, you can focus on that.”A bias against vocational high schools’Saray expressed that there is a bias against vocational high schools, stating, ‘During my time, after graduating from vocational high school, I couldn’t choose engineering departments, and that was the biggest disadvantage for me. Changes have been made, which is a great advantage. I think studying at a vocational high school is a great advantage. Because generally, young people start high school at the age of 16-17, is it better to learn a profession there or to receive general education? Definitely, it is more beneficial to focus on a profession. Then at the age of 21, things can be different. I think successful people like me and those who will be successful like you will completely break this perception. I lived my high school life in Bağcılar, and thanks to this, I graduated from Bağcılar Anatolian Technical High School’s Aircraft Electronics and Technician Department. Back then, frankly, it never occurred to me that I could do big things in different countries or big companies. But various opportunities come your way. I want to tell you as an elder brother. I realize that the education here is more than sufficient. Because this culture we learn here is actually very valuable. Because I can say comfortably since I have been in different positions in companies in different places.”An important role model for our youth’Bağcılar Mayor Abdullah Özdemir stated that Samet Saray is a very important figure that young people can see as a role model, saying, ‘Our brother Samet studied in Bağcılar, he is a very valuable individual in Istanbul. At the same time, he continues to be a source of pride for our country by achieving very important tasks abroad. We had the opportunity to benefit from his valuable experiences together with our youth. There was a cartoon called The Jetsons in our childhood, those who know, know, the new generation may not know it much. Traveling to work from space with spacecraft, from home to work. We are not far from that now. Mr. Samet is working on that. Probably in your youth, you will travel like in The Jetsons, we will see Turkey and the World.’