Solar Impulse Across America.
Feb. 20, 2013
Solar Impulse Across America
The solar airplane of Bertrand Piccard will hover for two months over the USA. This journey should take place next summer. Four steps are planned.
Researcher and aviation pioneer Bertrand Piccard Solar will fly Solar Impulse in 2013 the United States from west to east. The journey should take about two months at the speed of 70 km / h. Four steps are planned between San Francisco and New York.
A Boeing 747 landed Wednesday on the military airfield of Payerne (AB) Switzerland. He came searching for spare parts of Solar Impulse for his journey to the United States. Boeing will leave Thursday morning.
Solar Impulse loading on board a Boeing 747 in Payerne AB
The aircraft landed at 17:30. A kiss black, more than a hundred curious transistor attended the arrival of the jumbo jet company Cargolux. The device from Luxembourg is posed as a flower on the short track military.
Loading nose
His arrival was a challenge, said André Borschberg, Director of Solar Impulse. He has had to verify that the tarmac is strong enough to support this giant air.
Solar Impulse loading on board a Boeing 747 in Payerne AB
The jumbo jet has indeed the same scale as the solar airplane, or 64 meters. But it weighs 257 times more than this one: 1600 kg for Solar Impulse against 412'770 kg for 747. It is the only feasible means of transport for a camera so small and fragile, the CEO noted.
Gaping nose, the plane was loaded with the help of cranes. Main deck house hosted the HB-SIA parts. Among them, the fuselage and the wing disassembled into three parts, batteries and engine.
Solar Impulse loading on board a Boeing 747 in Payerne AB
Three accompanying
Giant airs join Moffett Airfield, on the California coast, near the center of NASA research in the heart of Silicon Valley. The Jumbo Jet arrive at its destination Thursday around 20:30 or 12:30 in the United States. It will make a stop in Luxembourg to refuel and load additional equipment.
Three engineers and technicians Solar Impulse will travel. They ensure that safety requirements are met and handling during unloading of the machine.
Presentation to the President
The plane will be reassembled in early March in anticipation of its mission "Across America". After flying from Switzerland to Morocco last year, the prototype will attempt to perform the legendary flight from the west coast to the east coast, from San Francisco to Washington DC and New York.
The plane and pilot Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg be ready to go around May 1. The journey should be completed in New York in July, noted André Borschberg. "Our goal is to make at least four stops, not to go fast," he said.
SolarImpulse description
"The interest in this prototype is strong in the country aviation pioneer. We have contacts in Congress, with universities, with companies in Silicon Valley. We also hope to present the aircraft to President Barack Obama, "said the driver.
Find partners
The aim is not only to make the project, but also to find partners on the continent, and Asia. China in particular is very interested in these new technologies, reported André Borschberg.
The operational cost of the journey to the United States amounted to $ 2.5 million. It includes transportation and infrastructure. The million allocated to Presence Switzerland will communication activities and media, he said.
"Overall Operation Solar Impulse is expected to reach 130 million. We are still looking for 30 million ", said the aviator.
SolarImpulse across Bourget, Switzerland
The second way
The HB-SIA will return to Switzerland in early September. Its drivers to precede the end of July.
The second prototype, HB-SIB, is under construction in Dübendorf, Switzerland. The assembly will be done soon. Should join Payerne in early 2014. Its interior and its technology should be presented in November. Then testing can begin.
"In two years starts around the world. End of March 2015 is tomorrow for us, "noted Andre Borschberg.
Fore more information about Solar Impulse, visit: http://www.solarimpulse.com/
Images, Text, Credits: SolarImpulse / ATS / Newsnet / Keystone / Translation: Orbiter.ch Aerospace.
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