Record-Breaking Solar Impulse Flight Reaches Hawaii After 5 Nights & Days Airborne Without Fuel (Video)

July 3, 20159 years ago Amber Archangel 42 Comments

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Originally published on 1Sun4All.

MORE BREAKING NEWS from Solar Impulse 2 (Si2):

I feel exhilarated by this extraordinary journey. I have climbed the equivalent altitude of Mount Everest five times without much rest. The team at the Mission Control Center in Monaco (MCC) was my eyes and my ears. The MCC was battling to give me the possibility to rest and recover, but also maximizing the aircraft’s energy levels and sending me trajectories and flight strategies simulated by computer.

This success fully validates the vision that my partner Bertrand Piccard had after his round-the-world balloon flight to reach unlimited endurance in an airplane without fuel. —André Borschberg, co-founder, CEO and pilot of Solar Impulse, and pilot extraordinaire

Solar Impulse tweeted: “Congrats @BertrandPiccard & @André Borschberg you are Explorers. Nothing more to say.”

What André has achieved is extraordinary from the perspective of a pilot. But furthermore, he has also led the technical team during the construction of this revolutionary prototype. —Bertrand Piccard, initiator of Solar Impulse and one of Si2’s pilots

Bertrand Piccard said on Twitter: “When I saw the 16 landing lights of @solarimpulse appear in the sky, tears came to my eyes.” And, “Can you imagine that a solar powered airplane without fuel can now fly longer than a jet plane! #futureisclean.”

To catapult this idea to the next level, Solar Impulse initiated the Future Is Clean campaign, calling on supporters to add their voice to the message on futureisclean.org: a website serving as a petition to convince governments around the globe to implement the necessary clean technology solutions and help ensure that the United Nations’ upcoming Conference on Climate Change (COP21) is successful in renewing the Kyoto protocol this December in Paris.

André Borschberg tweeded: Just landed in #Hawaii with @solarimpulse! For @BertrandPiccard and I, it’s a dream coming true.” And, “I promised @BertrandPiccard I would bring #Si2 to Hawaii in one piece. Now the #solar airplane is his!”