Originally published on 1Sun4All.
Solar Impulse 2 (Si2) took off for its fourth flight, from Varanasi (Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport, VNS/VIBN) in the Republic of India to Mandalay (Mandalay International Airport, MDL/VYMD) in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, at 23:52 UTC. Solar Impulse says Bertrand Piccard flew the zero-fuel airplane for about 1408 km (760NM, 875 miles) and an estimated time of 15 hours.
South of the Himalayas, the meeting of the jet streams could have caused difficult crosswinds for Si2. There were times during this part of the flight when Si2 encountered a downdraft and dropped 400 feet in a breath. Tail winds in the jet stream caught the “fast feather flying” and pushed it to a record flying speed. Si2 was able to cruise at speeds of 117 knots. This will be confirmed by the FAI (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale).
Bertrand Piccard landed in Myanmar as the Breitling Orbiter 2 ended its round-the-world attempt. With Solar Impulse, he and André Borschberg will share this historic opportunity created by clean technologies.
Solar Impulse said on Twitter:
.@bertrandpiccard is not wearing a bandana to look like a biker. It’s for the oxygen sensor ! pic.twitter.com/rFbKNTqMlb
— SOLAR IMPULSE (@solarimpulse) March 19, 2015
Solar Impulse added on Twitter::
#Flight4: @bertrandpiccard is flying at 108 knots! #LIVE on http://t.co/JIj9tHK6hl #futureisclean pic.twitter.com/EL2ztJHPTD
— SOLAR IMPULSE (@solarimpulse) March 19, 2015
With this landing, Si2 is comfortably one-third of the way through the Round-The-World mission. The solar-powered airplane landed with more “sunshine” fuel on board than it had when it departed from Varanasi, India.
HSH Prince Albert of Monaco was in the Mission Control Centre (MCC) in Monaco — nerve center of the Round-The-World — to welcome Bertrand Piccard back to the ground after his record-breaking flight.
Bertrand quoted Gandhi while giving an interview during the flight to Mandalay: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” He went on to say that Si2 is that change to inspire the world to use the power of renewable energy.
Solar Impulse continued on Twitter:
The mobile hangar is being inflated to protect #Si2 during our stay in #Mandalay #Myanmar! pic.twitter.com/LD9NWQmQwY
— SOLAR IMPULSE (@solarimpulse) March 19, 2015
Si2 will be in Mandalay for at least two days before departing for two scheduled stopovers in China and then the first big ocean crossing — across the Pacific, landing in Hawaii — for the first stopover in the United States.
Video Credit: SOLAR IMPULSE | Photo Credit: #Si2 is lining up on #Varanasi runway 27 for a takeoff toward Mandalay in 45mins! via Solar Impulse | Cartoon Credit: Martin Saive via Solar Impulse
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