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The Aditya Birla Group will host the world's first solar-powered airplane, “Solar Impulse 2”, in India at Ahmedabad and Varanasi during March.
The “Si2” will be the first solar-powered airplane to fly around the world, powered only by the Sun's rays. As it crosses India, the aircraft will be hosted by the Aditya Birla Group.
Solar Impulse is the brainchild of pilots and founders Bertrand Piccard (Initiator and Chairman) and André Borschberg (CEO). A psychiatrist and explorer, Piccard flew around the world in a hot-air balloon in 1999. The design team is led by André Borschberg, a seasoned flight design engineer, entrepreneur and former Swiss fighter pilot, an official said here on Wednesday.
“As our local Indian host partner, we look forward to working with the Aditya Birla Group in organizing events and activities which will inspire both business and political decision makers and future leaders as to the enormous economic and social potential of clean technologies" said Piccard and Borschberg.
This single-seater aircraft is made of carbon fiber, with the wingspan of a Boeing 747, weighing 2,300 kgs, the weight of a family car. Over 17,000 solar cells and four lithium batteries supply the electric motors with enough renewable energy to fly day and night. It was built to fly around the world without a drop of fuel and to demonstrate the effectiveness of clean technologies and the importance of sustainability.
The Aditya Birla Group will be the host partner for the India leg of the Solar Impulse journey, with stops planned in Ahmedabad and Varanasi and will partner with the Solar Impulse Main Sponsors Solvay, ABB, Schindler and Omega to offer ground support to the world record attempt.
The zero-fuel airplane, propelled solely by solar energy to attempt the first round-the-world solar flight, is being supported by main partners Solvay, Omega, Schindler, ABB, and official partners Google, Altran, Bayer Material Science, Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, Swisscom and Moët Hennessy.
After the original Solar Impulse (Si1) prototype, which holds 8 world records, Si2 engineers have designed and constructed a new single-seater aircraft with a 72-meter wingspan, larger than that of a Boeing 747. The 17,248 solar cells built into the wing supply electric motors (17.5 CV each) with renewable energy. The solar cells recharge four lithium batteries totalling 633 kg each, which allow the aircraft to fly at night and have virtually unlimited autonomy.
The Si2 round-the-world flight will take-off from Abu Dhabi (UAE) in early March and return by late July 2015. The route includes stops in Muscat, Oman; Ahmedabad and Varanasi, India; Mandalay, Myanmar; and Chongqing and Nanjing, China.
After crossing the Pacific Ocean via Hawaii, Si2 will fly across the U.S.A. stopping in Phoenix, the Midwest, and New York City at JFK Airport. After crossing the Atlantic Ocean, the final legs include a stop-over in Southern Europe or North Africa before completing the round-the-world flight at its final destination, Abu Dhabi.
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