News / Tributes to ‘true original’ Frank Strang following space chief’s death
TRIBUTES have been paid to the “visionary” and “true original” SaxaVord Spaceport chief Frank Strang following his death from cancer.
Figures who worked with Strang as he developed his vision for a vertical launch spaceport in Unst have remembered his tenacity and determination to bring it to fruition, despite considerable obstacles.
Astronaut camp teacher Mike Mongo, who regularly worked in partnership with SaxaVord Spaceport, said there had been no greater champion for UK space than Strang.
“How often do we use the world ‘visionary’, yet how many can look over crofting grounds and see an actual spaceport?” Mongo said.
“Frank Strang built us all a future worth having and then quietly handed us the keys.
“I will sing his praises to all the UK and the world for the rest of my life.”
Former MSP Tavish Scott, who was a non-executive director for Shetland Space Centre as the spaceport plans took flight, said he was “desperately sad” at Strang’s death.
“There is no doubt that without Frank Strang the SaxaVord Space Centre would not be the reality it now is,” Scott said.
“He fought against the indifference and at times, downright opposition of many in the public sector to Unst being the future of space launch for the UK.
“His legacy will be the first of many UK space launches.”
He added he would miss Strang’s cheerfulness, commitment and drive, as well as a “shared love of Liverpool Football Club”.
“My thoughts are with his family and the entire SaxaVord team both in Unst and Grantown on this really sad day,” Scott added.
Shetland Islands Council chief executive Maggie Sandison has been involved in meetings with Strang and the SaxaVord team since the idea’s inception. She said she had been left “in awe of Frank’s leadership and personal resilience”.
“I have been witness to the passion, drive and commitment that has made the spaceport a reality,” she said.
“Frank hit many challenges, disappointments and roadblocks along the way. I have admired his ability to dust himself down, pick himself up and find a way ahead even when it has looked impossible.
“To Frank setbacks were not failures but opportunities to grow, improve and prove his detractors wrong.”
Sandison also paid tribute to Strang’s willingness to ensure the SaxaVord project was conceived and constructed entirely with the community in mind.
“The commitment that Frank showed to the Unst community – communicating, involving and engaging at every step made this feel like a partnership,” she said.
“Frank’s commitment to the spaceport education strategy created opportunities for children and young people to engage with astronauts, attend space camps and participate in national space competitions.
“His dedication has left an indelible mark on these young people shaping their dreams of the opportunities that can be found in science and in space.
“Frank taught us all about the importance of using one’s platform for good and his influence will persist for many years to come.”
MP Alistair Carmichael is another person who watched Strang shape the spaceport from initial idea to its final form, and described him as a “natural entrepreneur”.
“He fizzed with ideas and was never afraid to give something a go,” Carmichael said.
“Sometimes they worked out and sometimes they did not. However his enterprises ended there was never any question that he had given any less than 100 per cent to them.”
Carmichael said Strang “could occasionally be impatient with rules that appeared to him to be bureaucratic and holding enterprise back.”
“He was never afraid to express that frustration in fairly blunt terms. That did not always make him friends,” he added.
Photo: Malcolm Younger/Millgaet Media
The MP described Strang’s death as “enormously sad news”,
“Frank’s most enduring business legacy will be the establishment of the spaceport in Unst,” he said.
“It is no exaggeration to say that without his drive, determination and occasionally pushing boundaries, that would never have happened.
“It is desperately sad that he did not see it come to its final fruition.
“My thoughts and sympathies are with Debbie and all his family. We have lost a true original and the world will be a slightly less colourful place without him.”
Fellow Northern Isles politician Beatrice Wishart also paid tribute, saying her thoughts were with Strang’s friends, loved ones and colleagues at SaxaVord.
“Without Frank’s vision and dogged determination Unst’s spaceport may never have got off the ground,” she said. “The project and his colleagues at SaxaVord have my continued support.”
Shetland Reel distillery, where Strang was also a co-founder, said he had been “instrumental” in its development and would be “greatly missed”.
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