UAE- Masdar's solar jet crosses another landmark: paper
Date
6/12/2016 7:34:20 AM
(MENAFN- Emirates News Agency (WAM))
ABU DHABI, 12th June, 2016 (WAM) -- A UAE newspaper has said that the Masdar-backed Solar Impulse 2 aircraft has crossed yet another milestone in its clean energy bid to mark new records in innovation: it flew by the Statue of Liberty in New York early on Saturday.
"It''s absolutely incredible," Swiss pilot Andre Borschberg said over a live video feed as the iconic statue lit up the night below him. "It''s a dream here."
Ending the US crossing at the Statue of Liberty "is a very strong moment for me," said Borschberg as he approached New York, calling it a "symbol of the freedom of enterprise, the freedom to innovate".
"It was the 14th leg of an east-west journey that began in March last year in Abu Dhabi, and has taken the aircraft across Asia and the Pacific to the United States," said The Gulf Today in an editorial on Sunday.
"From New York the Solar Impulse team will attempt to cross the Atlantic to Europe and on to the Middle East.
"It is simply remarkable and spectacular that the plane has trammelled new frontiers in innovation and eco-friendliness. A journey like this needs a lot of stamina, endurance and patience, which the two pilots, Borschberg and fellow Swiss pilot Bertrand Piccard, have shown they possess in plenty. The expedition can be particularly taxing when its speed is a mere 30 miles (48 kilometres) per hour, although its flight speed can double when exposed to full sunlight.
"But no matter: when the target is to circumnavigate the earth with the sun as the plane''s only source of power, the zeal to surge ahead and reach the destination becomes all the more stronger.
"Borschberg was at the controls of Solar Impulse 2 on its most difficult segment of the trip, a 4,000-mile, 118-hour endurance run from Nagoya, Japan to Hawaii.
"Interestingly, the plane landed in Hawaii just as the American state kickstarted its own ambitious clean energy project. The single-seat aircraft, which has the wingspan of a Boeing 747, is clad in 17,000 solar cells.
"Masdar and Abu Dhabi are backing this mission to mark the UAE''s year of innovation. It spotlights the trendsetting achievement of the Emirates in the realm of pioneering eco-friendly initiatives.
"It is a testimony to the 12 years of work on the project, from its inception to its final design, and preparations for the global flight. This epic path-breaking venture to break new grounds in sustainability will be remembered for a long, long time to come," concluded the Sharjah-based daily.
WAM/Esraa