It’s been a long and exciting journey but after more than 16 months, of which over 500 hours were spent in the air, Solar Impulse 2 has ended its around the world trip, landing safely in Abu Dhabi.
“This tremendous feat is another proofpoint that we have entered a period of remarkable growth for renewable energy,” said Adnan Z. Amin, Director-General of IRENA, of Solar Impulse 2’s landing at UAE’s Al Bateen airport. “This remarkable achievement is not only a technological breakthrough but also a clear signal that the age of renewable power is here to stay.”
The historic journey of the world’s favourite solar plane, broke eight world records and travelled 42,000 km without using a single drop of fuel. “If an airplane has succeeded to fly day and night without fuel, then we can power our world on clean energy,” says Bertrand Piccard, one of the plane’s two pilots and a founder of the project.
Piccard piloted the final leg of the journey from Cairo to Abu Dhabi, a trip delayed by wind and seasonal weather over the Arabian Peninsula, and covered roughly 2,700 kilometres in a little under 49 hours. Exiting the plane, the pilot proclaimed the world no longer needed to rely on carbon emitting energy sources, and that more than a historical moment in aviation, Solar Impulse’s successful journey was an achievement for renewables.
source-irenanewsroom
