Bertrand Piccard is on his way back to Europe!

Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard is following Charles Lindbergh’s path as he took off from JFK International Airport in order to cross the Atlantic Ocean – one of the most challenging legs of the circumnavigation!

He successfully took off on Monday 20 June 08:30 CET (06:30 UTC, 02:30 Local Time). The 15th leg and next destination is planned to be Seville International Airport (ESP) which brings the whole Team back to Europe in order to complete their flight around the world to its final destination in Abu Dhabi (UAE).

He is expected to land at the Seville Airport in Spain on 23 June. The flight, that should take four days and four nights non-stop depending on weather conditions, is one of the most challenging legs of the Round-The-World Solar Flight and will bring the whole team back on European grounds. 

Again, the connection to aviation history is remarkable: It was American Aviator Charles Lindbergh who performed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight departing also from New York to Paris in 1927 with his Ryan Monoplan “Spirit of St. Louis”. Solar Impulses flight is the first transatlantic solar and electric flight with zero fuel and zero emissions. The flight will last approximately 90 hours – 110 hours (timing subject to change) - the longest distance the Solar Impulse Team have had to fly this year.

Before his take off, Betrand mentioned: “Lindbergh’s transatlantic flight marked a new area in aviation and contributed to the progress of air transport on a large scale. With Solar Impulse, our aim is to encourage the deployment of clean technologies everywhere. If an airplane can fly day and night without fuel, everybody could use these same efficient solutions in their daily lives.”

As there are eight live cameras positioned in the cockpit, on the wings and in the Mission Control Center you can be with the pilot and the engineers throughout the flights and share the solar flight experience live through http://www.solarimpulse.com/rtw.

Photo credit: Solar Impulse / FAI Archive