Across America Mission: Solar Impulse ready for third leg from Dallas to St. Louis

Monday, 03 June 2013 10:38

Solar impulse FlightPhoenixtoDallas landing revillard-08 s After the San Francisco (California) to Phoenix (Arizona) and Phoenix to Dallas (Texas) flights, Solar Impulse is now ready for the third leg of its Across America Mission, from Dallas to St. Louis (Missouri). Take-off is scheduled for today 4am local time (11am Swiss time) and landing for tomorrow 1am local time (8am Swiss time).

The solar-powered plane, alternatively piloted by Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg, will be flown this time by Piccard, who will achieve, with a planned 21 hour flight, his longest flight in the single-seat to date.

The Solar Impulse team is facing yet another challenge in this third leg: the storms which struck Missouri on Friday rendered inoperable the Solar Impulse's hangar at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. Fortunately this situation will be remedied with the use of Solar Impulse's own inflatable hangar to park the aircraft. Conceived and designed by the Solar Impulse team for the world tour of 2015, this structure will be used for the very first time in real conditions.

Across America Mission

3 May 2013: First leg San Francisco/Moffett Airfield – Phoenix/Sky Harbor
22 May 2013: Second leg Phoenix/Sky Harbor – Dallas/Fort Worth
3 June 2013: Third leg Dallas/Fort Worth – St. Louis/Lambert Airport
Mid June 2013: Fourth leg St. Louis/Lambert Airport – Washington DC/Dulles
Early July 2013: Fifth and last leg Washington DC/Dulles – New York/JFK

Fly with us in the cockpit

The Solar Impulse team has set up a programme called "Fly with us in the cockpit" to create an influential global movement to promote the use of clean technology. Anyone can have their name carried in the cockpit of the solar airplane flying across the United States and show their support for clean technology.

Become a Solar Impulse virtual passenger

Solar Impulse world records (including claims)

Sub-Class	Type of Record	Performance	Date	Claimant	Status	Id
CS	Absolute altitude	9235 m	2010-07-08	André Borschberg (SUI)	ratified - current record	16042

CS	Duration	26 h 10 m 19 s	2010-07-08	André Borschberg (SUI)	ratified - current record	16044

CS	Gain of height	8744 m	2010-07-08	André Borschberg (SUI)	ratified - current record	16043

CS	Distance along a course, pre-declared waypoints	1487.6 km	2013-05-23	André Borschberg (SUI)	preliminary record claim received	16816

CS	Free Distance	1506.5 km	2013-05-23	André Borschberg (SUI)	preliminary record claim received	16817

CS	Straight distance, pre-declared waypoints	1099.3 km	2012-05-25	André Borschberg (SUI)	ratified - current record	16558

CS	Straight distance, pre-declared waypoints	1386.5 km	2013-05-23	André Borschberg (SUI)	preliminary record claim received	16815

Photo credit: Solar Impulse | Revillard | Rezo.ch

The solar-powered airplane Solar Impulse, which departed yesterday 22 May from Phoenix, reached Dallas this morning, thus achieving a flight that might prove to be the longest flight ever made with 1’541 km.

With this performance André Borschberg, who piloted the plane in this 2^nd leg of the Across America Mission, would supersede the record he himself established in 2012

All the data from the loggers must be now be provided by the Solar Impulse team to the National Aeronautics Association and then to the FAI for ratification. Observers from the FAI Amateur Built and Experimental Aircraft Commission (CIACA) were present in Dallas and at the Observation Centre in Payerne, Switzerland to collect the flight information. The Observers included CIACA President Alfons Hubmann.

“This leg was particularly challenging because of fairly strong winds at the landing. It also was the longest flight – in terms of distance - ever flown by a solar airplane. You have to understand that the pilot needs to stay awake for more than 20 hours without any autopilot” said André Borschberg, co-founder, CEO and pilot of Solar Impulse who still holds the record for the longest duration ever in a solar powered airplane with 26 hours.”