Solar plane attempts round-the-world trip... flying through the night

A sun-powered plane will attempt a revolutionary round-the-world trip from Middle East.

16:00 06 January 2015

Solar Impulse 2, a sun powered plane will attempt to travel across the world from Middle East. Scheduled to fly through the night, the plane began its journey as it was loaded onto a cargo carrier in Switzerland before setting off on its flight early Tuesday headed for Abu Dhabi.

Solar Impulse is the successor of Solar Impulse, a pioneering craft which notched up a 26-hour flight in 2010.

The project was headed by Swiss scientists-cum-adventurer Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borshberg, a former Swiss air force pilot.

"I am moved, because this is really a magical moment, an important moment," said Borschberg. "We've been working on this for 12 years."

Meanwhile, Piccard said: "What we need to do now is convince the political and the industrial world that this is the direction we need to go in.”

The goal of the mission is for Solar Impulse 2 to fly non-stop for more than 120 hours, which is equivalent to five days and five nights. The plane will head over the Arabian Sea to India, Myanmar and China, then cross the Pacific Ocean, the United States, the Atlantic, southern Europe, and finally North Africa before going to back Switzerland.

An overview of the First Round-The-World Solar Flight, in numbers:

•    2 pilots, Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg, flying one after the other in the single-seater cockpit
•    1 airplane: Solar Impulse 2
•    Zero fuel on board
•    A 35,000km (22,000 miles) journey
•    500 flying hours approx.
•    10 legs approx., some lasting more than 5 days and nights
•    A 5-month mission (March-August 2015)
•    A 60 people support team