Abu Dhabi: Making a moment of aviation ansd scientic history, the Solar Impulse 2 took off from here on Monday morning, beginning its five-month journey around the world before it returns to Abu Dhabi in late July.
Dignitaries and media gathered together on the tarmac of Al Bateen Executive Airport to watch the take off of the single-seat aircraft, which will be fully powered by solar energy for the entirety of its trip and will not consume a single drop of fuel.
The aircraft was piloted by Andre Borschberg, one of the founders of the Solar Impulse 2, for its first flight to Muscat, Oman. Betrand Piccard, the co-founder behind the project, will then pilot the aircraft for its second journey, with both pilots alternating for the 12 flights.
The Solar Impulse 2 will face its challenges, with some flights taking as long as five days straight, with the crossing of the Pacific towards the United States, for a total of 120 hours of flying time. Weather conditions will also have to be closely monitored and followed, with negative weather conditions leading to possible delays for the flight.
Speaking after watching the take off, Betrand Piccard spoke of his joy at finally witnessing the aircraft going up into the sky, the culmination of years of hard work. “It’s a relief because we have been working so hard to start this adventure, and now finally the aeroplane is in the air and we are now in the dream,” he said.
Up until the moment of take off there were some technical difficulties, according to Piccard, “It was stressful until the last moment, there was a little electrical problem to solve at the last moment. Until the last moment we thought nothing can be taken for granted, every detail has to be won one after the other. But now here we go, we go with the spirit and friendship with Masdar, towards a vision with a future of renewable energies and clean technologies.”
According to Piccard the aircraft will be flying at a speed of 25 knots, though the higher the aircraft goes, the faster the ground speed. The aircraft will be flying at a maximum altitude of 28,000 feet during the day, and going down to 5,000 feet during the night with solar-powered batteries providing the energy for the night flights.
The main message behind the Solar Impulse 2 is to encourage people and society to move towards more clean and sustainable energy, Piccard said.
People will be able to watch and track the flight throughout its entire journey from the group’s website, www.solarimpulse.com, with 24-hour live feeds. Highlighting the significance of the flight, a link to a live feed was displayed by Google on its front page.
Abu Dhabi has been acting as the host city for the Solar Impulse 2, with Masdar working in close cooperation to help get the aircraft into the sky.
— Sami Zaatari is a trainee at Gulf News
