Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Solar Impulse 2 touches down in China on world tour

The aircraft has completed its sixth leg on its global journey

Neela Debnath
Wednesday 22 April 2015 10:48 BST
Comments
The Solar Impulse 2 completes its sixth leg on the world tour
The Solar Impulse 2 completes its sixth leg on the world tour

A solar-powered plane has landed in East China after finishing the sixth leg of its world tour.

The Solar Impulse 2 touched down in Nanjing province on Tuesday afternoon following a 17-hour flight from Chongqing.

Pilot Bertrand Piccard flew the aircraft during the 1344km leg and was greeted with a cheering crowd after completing the journey. He emerged from the plane smiling and giving the thumbs up to the group.

“Clean technology is a medication, a therapy for the world to have a better quality of life, to create jobs, make profit for the industry. At the same time protect the environment and reduce CO2 emissions,” Piccard said after disembarking from the plane.

The project was launched in a bid to raise awareness about sustainable energy. The zero-fuel plane relies on 17,248 solar cells built into the wing to power it.

The Solar Impulse 2 weighs as much as a family car and has a wingspan of 72 meters (236 feet), making it wider than a Boeing 747.

The plane first took off on 9 March from Abu Dhabi as it embarked on its tour around the world and expected to return to the Middle East in late July or early August.

The plane is being manned by two Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, who have already flown the aircraft coast to coast in the US previously.

The world tour will last five months with the Solar Impulse 2 expected to cover a total distance of 35,000km over 12-legs.

The vessel still has to fly over the Pacific Ocean and cross the US and Southern Europe.

The Solar Impulse 2 will next be flying to Hawaii for the seventh leg of the flight.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in