André Borschberg landed Si2 in Egypt for his final flight on the round-the-world
Today, André Borschberg’s legacy at Solar Impulse will be remembered as he closed Solar Impulse’s penultimate flight of the round-the-world tour. He landed in Cairo, Egypt on July 13th at 5:10AM UTC, 7:10AM CET, 1:10AM EDT after 48 hours and 50 minutes of flight.
daa3d4e3-76b0-42c5-a935-210a80e63d52.jpg (96.64 KiB) Viewed 3080 times
Today, Solar Impulse will takeoff for the last time on the attempt to circumnavigate the globe. A continuous criss-cross between thrill and sadness, we are finding it difficult to balance our emotions to prepare for our final landing.
Bertrand Piccard will takeoff with Si2 from Cairo, Egypt on July 16th at 22:00 UTC, 11:00PM CET, 6:00PM EDT. The flight is expected to last 48 hours, completing the round-the-world solar flights upon touch down in Abu Dhabi. This is your last chance to be a part of this adventure - we have an entire live experience set up for you with a live television show with important interviews and essential information, and a virtual cockpit where you can follow the flight path, energy level, pilot’s vitals - all on
solarimpulse.com.
BREAKING: flight postponed, more information will follow soon.
Says pilot Bertrand Piccard: "I'm sick. Stomach upset. I prefer to postpone the take-off @solarimpulse. I cannot go flying for 48 hours in that shape. Sorry"
Suspense on the ground before even getting airborne!
Here is the latest news from the Solar Impulse team :
The MCC team has identified a weather window that could allow us to overcome the high temperatures across Saudi Arabia and hopefully land in Abu Dhabi after 48 hours. For this, however, we need to be able to take off from Cairo! Conditions are tricky with winds challenging Si2’s limitations on the runway. We are therefore getting ready for an attempt, but there is a risk that we will need to postpone the flight at the last minute.
Our provisional takeoff from Cairo, Egypt to Abu Dhabi, UAE will be at11:00PM UTC on July 23rd and 1:00AM CEST, 7:00PM EDT on July 24th. We are likely to have to adapt timings - so, as always with Solar Impulse, stay on your toes.
Solar Impulse will complete the first round-the-world solar flight SOON
Wherever you are in the world, don’t miss out on this one. This will be a truly historic moment for humanity. The first solar-powered aeroplane is about to complete the first flight around the world.
Solar Impulse 2 flew 43,000km without fuel, a first for energy!
Emotions, tears, relief, exhilaration is running through the team right now after completing the first Round-the-World solar flight. Bertrand Piccard touched down for one last smooth landing at 00:05 UTC, 2:05AM CEST on July 26th and 8:05PM EDT on July 25th in Al Bateen Executive Airport, Abu Dhabi after 48 hours of flight from Cairo, Egypt. The solar aeroplane has now made its full circle around the world, proving that clean technologies can really achieve the impossible.
Hm. With all due respect: it has mainly been proven that we are very far from petrol-free commercial air transport. Just about all parameters are insufficient: payload, speed, reliability, independence of weather ...
Of course most of that was known before, and I will not undervalue the achievement. But there is a very very long way to go yet.
jan_olieslagers wrote:Hm. With all due respect: it has mainly been proven that we are very far from petrol-free commercial air transport. Just about all parameters are insufficient: payload, speed, reliability, independence of weather ...
Of course most of that was known before, and I will not undervalue the achievement. But there is a very very long way to go yet.
That was also my feeling during the long days of waiting for a window of opportunity for the weather. But the Wright brothers one century ago also could fly only one person under the right weather conditions and on a limited distance.
Let's consider this as a first step, a giant step, but only the first step towards a cleaner world of air transportation.
And to be sure, Airbus is launching big research projects on electric engines...
Even if Solar Impulse 2's technology might not be (economically) viable in the nearby future, I'm still confident it will be, in the next decades to come. It's the only technological evolution that makes sense and the only right way to go. Aviation and other means of transportation will have to rely on more renewable sources of energy, it's as simple as that.
While I really do admire this endeavour and am happy to see Si2 concluded its journey around the world safely, I would like to know, is how many fuel etc. was burned for the support team of Si2's global journey...
Best regards,
Ivan
It's not good when it's done, it's done when it's good...
--- Facebook | Twitter | Flickr
Round-the-world to round-the-clock - The Solar Impulse 2 becomes an unmanned aircraft
Startup Skydweller turns Solar Impulse 2 into a "medium-altitude pseudo satellite" - up to 90 days aloft at 15,000-45,000ft carrying 300-800lb payload.
