View Full Version : Bertrand Piccard and a solar aircraft for the round the world
RASTAMIKE
29th Nov 2003, 01:37
To anyone who saw the latest challenge of this Swiss hero, will he succeed or fail to make this round the world without any other energy other than solar ???
Don't tell me ... a bearded man in a wooly pully flight suite is to be the backup pilot.
ATC Watcher
29th Nov 2003, 22:15
Do not mistake Piccard with Branson , I had the priviledge to meet the guy recently and he is a very charismatic person, but has no money. His drive is for a foundation aimed at raising money for a good cause. The bearded man with a pully will probably be there, but without Piccard there will be no attempt at all.
I personally wish him luck..
QDMQDMQDM
30th Nov 2003, 05:18
I found his book of the round the world extremely self-serving, but I guess if you're not that kind of person you don;t end up doing extraordinary things.
Good luck to him -- a solar RTW aircraft captures the imagination more than the virgin atlantic global flyer.
QDM
RASTAMIKE
1st Dec 2003, 00:02
Piccard and his bearded friend are going to make it. The EPFL of Lausanne is behind (as this school was behind the Alinghi success).
BoeingMEL
1st Dec 2003, 04:01
Mmmm solar powered aircraft flying by night...as it surely must do for many hours. Give us a break please! If you'd have believed every futuristic aviation story during the last 5 years in the Sunday Times we;d be enjoying the following right now:
1: Welsh-built multi engine jet powered seaplanes flying throughout the UK
2: Single engine public transport air-taxis operating throughout the UK
3: An American 4 engine hoverplane with VTOL, fans and 350 knots, no need for pilot's licence etc etc! Oh perlease!! BM
ATC Watcher
1st Dec 2003, 17:56
Boeing : flying at night : You do not have to : I do not know the full plan , so I might talk nonsense, but for instance if you plan your flight at the right time ( end June for the North emisphere ) and fly enough North and at certain high altitude, you actually would do it in near constant daylight .
watch the site :http://www.solar-impulse.com/fr/projet.php
they say they intend to fly at night but do not mention of the route..
Anyway good luck to them , to even attempt such a dream is worth supporting ! and I would not mind trying the glider !...
RASTAMIKE
2nd Dec 2003, 02:24
one of the challenge is the storage of solar energy for the nightflight. The wingspan will be of the size of an A340-600.
david viewing
2nd Dec 2003, 20:36
Presumably if they can solve the night storage problem then the rest of us could save the cost of solar cells altogether and just have battery operated aircraft, charged on the ground, that can fly 7-8 hrs! No more Lycomings! No more noise! No more fuel tax!
Come to think of it, that's exactly what's happened in the model flying community where you can buy a radio control model with 1/2 hr duration that will fly right out of the box it came in.