Solar Impulse, a prototype plane powered exclusively by solar energy, touched down on JFK International Airport at 11:09 PM last night, completing the final leg of its journey across the continental US. The successful landing represents the first time an aircraft capable of flying both in daylight and at night powered solely by the sun has managed to travel from coast to coast.
The plane’s journey began back on May 3rd in San Francisco, stopping off at Phoenix, Dallas-Fort Worth, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Washington DC before making its way to New York City. Though Solar Impulse did not finish the trip until two months after it began, the plane is a fair bit faster than that timespan would imply, flying at an average speed of 28.8 knots over the course of its 3511 mile flight path. Public viewings and meetings with politicians were arranged for each stop in an effort to promote clean technologies and renewable, efficient energies—such a viewing is planned for July 13th from 3:30 PM to 7:30 PM and July 14th from 11 AM to 7:30 PM at JFK.
A complication shortened the planned route of Solar Impulse from DC to New York as an eight-foot tear was discovered in the craft’s left wing. The tear was not considered a significant threat to pilot and project co-founder André Borschberg, and fortunately did not result in tragedy similar to the recent crash in San Francisco, but it did force the team to abandon its original plan for a flyby over the Statue of Liberty.
“This last leg was especially difficult due to the damage of the fabric on the left wing,” said Borschbeg. “But this type of problem is inherent to every experimental endeavor. In the end, this didn’t prevent us from succeeding in our Across America mission and provided an invaluable learning experience in preparation for the round-the-world tour in 2015.”
While solar planes remain a long way from replacing fossil fuel-powered commercial aircraft—Solar Impulse is a comparatively small craft and 105 hours, 41 minutes in the air as it traversed the continents—the flight’s completion represents a new benchmark for green vehicles.
“Flying coast-to-coast has always been a mythical milestone full of challenges for aviation pioneers,” said project founder, chairman, and pilot Dr. Bertrand Piccard. “During this journey, we had to find solutions for a lot of unforeseen situations, which obliged us to develop new skills and strategies. In doing so, we also pushed the boundaries of clean technologies and renewable energies to unprecedented levels.”
[Source: Solar Impulse]