Great idea for a commemoration...AND to advance the techo for light flight.
There already exists a German electric motor glider with solar panels on the wings and a range in excess of 1000 kms...so its quite feasable.
There is also a US electric LSA... the name escapes me..but sleek and fast?
The Chinese Yuneeq... which now may be much improved.. was a circuit trainer only..slow and not much range a few years ago.
An hour and a half of circuit training... and a re-charge at $7.oo !!
The realty would be greater, but how much more affordable would flying be !
A good example would be the Darwin -Adelaide Solar Challenge.
Just look at the amazing developments and changes over the years that have occurred there to speed up the journey.
Im sure there would be many student groups from around the world with the skills and techo-knowhow to put up a machine to give their country some qudos. All good stuff.
So while all you folk have been paddling down the "Roo Route", (been there done that), I'll meet y'all up in Darwin having crossed Oz with a bag of mail to commemorate the First Aerial Crossing of Australia from Pt Cook to Darwin in 1919. Not sure I can afford an electric biplane tho.
Now where do I get a BE 2 replica from... NZed ?