Geneva, Switzerland: The sun-powered plane Solar Impulse 2 has made a successful test flight in Hawaii, where it has been grounded for repairs on its round-the-world trek, the Swiss-based project said today.
"The first Solar Impulse 2 maintenance flight took place on Friday 26 of February (and) was uneventful. The plane took off from Kalaeloa airport at 4:32PM UTC [GMT] with our test pilot, Markus Scherdel, in the cockpit, and landed at 6:05PM UTC," it said on its blog.
Lasting an hour and a half and reaching an altitude of 8,000 feet (2,400 metres), the flight enabled technicians to run checks on the stabilisation and cooling system, "which both performed superbly," the project said.
The plane completed nearly half of an unprecedented round-the-world journey without using a drop of fuel before battery damage during a gruelling five-day leg from Japan to Hawaii in July forced its grounding.
On December 20, Solar Impulse spokeswoman Alexandra Gindroz told AFP that, after securing funds to complete the repairs and finance the next phase of operations, the plane would be ready to fly again by April 20.
The aircraft took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on March 9, powered by 17,000 solar cells, with the aim of promoting renewable energy through a round-the-world flight.
Pilots Andre Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard have divided the flying throughout the groundbreaking project.
"The first Solar Impulse 2 maintenance flight took place on Friday 26 of February (and) was uneventful. The plane took off from Kalaeloa airport at 4:32PM UTC [GMT] with our test pilot, Markus Scherdel, in the cockpit, and landed at 6:05PM UTC," it said on its blog.
Lasting an hour and a half and reaching an altitude of 8,000 feet (2,400 metres), the flight enabled technicians to run checks on the stabilisation and cooling system, "which both performed superbly," the project said.
On December 20, Solar Impulse spokeswoman Alexandra Gindroz told AFP that, after securing funds to complete the repairs and finance the next phase of operations, the plane would be ready to fly again by April 20.
Advertisement
Pilots Andre Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard have divided the flying throughout the groundbreaking project.
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Solar Impulse Completes Trip Around The World Without A Drop Of Fuel Solar Impulse 2 Completes Its Epic Solar Flight Around the World Solar Impulse 2 Pilot Andre Borschberg Dares The Impossible Parents Gave Names Of Interns, Doctors To CBI In Kolkata Horror: Sources Who Is Jasveen Sangha, "Ketamine Queen" Charged With Matthew Perry's Death How Extreme Weather Is Leading To Rise In Child Marriages In Pakistan Two Sisters Returning From Court Run Over By Car In UP: Cops India Sends 1,400 kg Anti-Cancer Drugs To Syria In Humanitarian Assistance Police Arrest Suspect In Bihar Dalit Girl Kidnapping, Murder Case Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.