Solar Impulse the Solar-Powered Plane Completes a 26hour Test Flight

The solar-powered aircraft named Solar Impulse has completed a 26-hour test flight in Switzerland at 9 a.m. (3 a.m. ET) Thursday. This solar-powered aircraft is hoped to encircle in one of this days the globe. The name of the solar-powered aircraft is Solar Impulse.

Solar Impulse took of before 7 a.m. Wednesday from an airfield in Payerne. The one piloting the solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse was Andre Borschberg. Solar Impulse flew to a height of nearly 28,000 feet (8,500 meters). Andre Borschberg was impressed by the results of the test flight and verbalizes “I’ve been a pilot for 40 years now, but this flight has been the most incredible one of my flying career. Just sitting there and watching the battery charge level rise and rise thanks to the sun. I have just flown more than 26 hours without using a drop of fuel and without causing any pollution” Since the Solar Impulse takes its energy from the sun the power decreases when nightfall comes Solar Impulse slowly descended to an altitude of 4,500 feet (1,500 meters). It remained in that altitude due to battery power. When dawn arrived Solar Impulse still had six hours of flying time left in its solar-fueled batteries. Solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse arrived after 26 hours of flight in Switzerland. In 2012, the team hopes to fly Solar Impulse around the world in five stages.  Stay tuned for more news and updates on solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse.