The Solar Impulse 2 trip around the world

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BREAKING NEWS: Due to weather consideration, the first possible RTW departure date is postponed to March 9 2015!

And when one speaks weather, our national meteorologist Luc Trullemans (seen on this picture) is probably the guy who decided the postponement...

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Hello. Nobody to cover the RTW trip of the Solar Impulse during my absence?

Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg are taking Si2 further East. The solar airplane took off this morning in Ahmedabad, with André Borschberg at the commands. It will land in Varanasi, the second and last Indian stop. Bertrand Piccard will continue onward to Mandalay, Myanmar tomorrow.

[Homo Aeroportus]

Hello. Nobody to cover the RTW trip of the Solar Impulse during my absence? ...

Hi André,

I've tried several times to connect using the link in an e-mail received this morning but this is what you get on the main page of Solar Impulse ...

[WE'LL BE BACK SOON]

Solar Impulse website is experiencing some difficulties, please excuse the inconvenience,
we are working on it and will be back soon.



Will revert when there is more.

H.A.

[Homo Aeroportus]

The SI2 web site is still out.

Anyhow, she made it safely today to Varanasi, VNS-VIBN. Pilot was André Borschberg.

Next leg (tomorrow?) is to Mandalay, MDL-VYMD. Bertrand Piccard has a confirmed seat on this one. Priority boarding, hand luggage only.

So far the RTW journey looks as follows (including next leg) :

Courtesy Great Circle Map

OMAA-AUH-Abu Dhabi, to OOMS-MCT-Muscat : 206NM
OOMS-MCT-Muscat to AMD-VAAH-Ahmedabad : 793NM
AMD-VAAH-Ahmedabad to VNS-VIBN-Varanasi : 578NM
Total flown to date : 1577NM
To come : VNS-VIBN-Varanasi to MDL-VYMD-Mandalay : 757NM

Times of India informs that this morning the take-off of Solar Impulse 2 got delayed by nearly two hours due to ... Customs clearance.
Bertrand Piccard who flew in from Muscat, did not seek immigration clearance upon his arrival ... one week ago.
"Bertrand Piccard : Since 5 days we are trying to get all the stamps and clearance. Everyday they say come tomorrow and then tomorrow. We were desperate to get all the stamps and still some are left".
"Immigration official : We go to the ladder only when PM, President or Chief Justice of India is coming. Piccard was neither a VVIP nor a state guest so he should have come for clearance upon his arrival".

Welcome to India.

Not sure when they will get all the additional stamps and head for Mandalay

H.A.

Article on http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 604884.cms

[Homo Aeroportus]

Seems all signals are Go and Bertrand has all the stamps

Live broadcast to start at 23.30 UTC.

In the meantime Youtube direct on : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONSk3EDgAB8#t=1115


Enjoy.

H.A.

[Homo Aeroportus]

SI2 now on finals for landing at Mandalay Int'l Airport.

http://www.solarimpulse.com/

Will remain on the ground in a special inflatable hangar until at least next Wednesday March 25th due to Wx.

H.A.

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UPDATE: earliest possible take-off date for next stage is now Sunday 28th March UTC! Difficult weather conditions over China.

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Bertrand Piccard will take off with Si2 from Mandalay (Myanmar) to Chongqing (China) on March 29 at 21:00 UTC. From there, Andre Borschberg​ (a former Swiss Air Force pilot, as everyone knows) will fly to Nanjing.

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Ready for departure from Mandalay to China at 21:00 UTC (05:00 LT) with Bertrand Piccard in command:

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Just departed in the dark night from Mandalay (Mandalay International Airport, MDL/VYMD) in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, CKG/ZUCK (China), a 1375 km flight expected to last 19-20 hrs !

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The anticipated 19 hours will be physically demanding for Bertrand Piccard, due to the prolonged use of oxygen required in the unpressurized cockpit, in which he will face temperatures descending to minus 20 degrees celsius. The pilot has limited time allowed for high altitude preparation as Si2 will fly over the Himalaya. Once in China, the weather forecasted is mainly clear skies – a rare situation in the region. However, strong, low level winds up to 40 knots are expected in Chongqing, which will require the pilot to tackle these challenging conditions.

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D-3: The first possible departure date for RTW (China domestic) Flight 6 from Chongqing to Nanjing is April 14. The delay is due to clouds (the Solar Impulse needs sunshine) and strong crosswinds which could put the aircraft out of its trajectory.

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UPDATE: due to crosswinds above limits along the route, earliest possible take-off is now Thursday 16th of April.

This shows a little bit the limitations of such an aeroplane: it needs sunshine, a lot, and can do nothing about adverse winds...

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No flight possible for Si2 on Thursday April 16 due to a narrow window of only one hour for the landing in Nanjing!

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What was supposed to be just a small pit stop in Chongqing before continuing to Nanjing is now becoming a long stay because of weather conditions and the lack of windows for landing in Nanjing.

Furthermore, pilot André Borschberg had to fly back to Switzerland for a medical examination.

When will flight 6 take off?

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Good solar flight possibility to Nanjing on Tuesday April 21! Stay tuned...

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Solar Impulse will take off from Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, in the People’s Republic of China, to fly to Nanjing Lukou International Airport. Bertrand Piccard will be at the controls of Si2 for the sixth and last leg before crossing the Pacific.

Chongqing, initially meant to be a pit stop on the route towards Nanjing. However, due to low battery level upon arrival and bad meteorological conditions in the region, the team ended up waiting a little over two week for the next favorable window.

Meanwhile, André Borschberg, who was suppose to do this next flight, is in Switzerland recovering from a zona. The challenges are not always where you expect them.

Don't miss the Live show on solarimpulse.com with Conor taking us through what Bertrand Piccard will face during his next flight.

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On to Nanjing, Solar Impulse 2 has departed Chongqing on flight #6 of its Round the World trip.

Bertrand Piccard is the pilot. As André Borschberg is resting in Switzerland to prepare for the first leg of the Pacific crossing, Bertrand Piccard is replacing him for this 6th flight to Nanjing. Planned to last around 17 hours, Si2 will go up to 12,100 feet maximum due to medium level clouds. The pilot will face challenging weather conditions and could even encounter snow.

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Flight 6: so far, so good! landing in 5-6 hours.

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Safe landing in Nanjing. Flight 6 successfully completed.

Soon after takeoff, Si2 went through turbulences. ATC gave the green light for Bertrand Piccard to climb up to 14,000 feet, which is higher than planned (12,000 feet). Since then, the flight has gone smoothly, lifting the spirits of our Solar Team! The Monaco Control Centre had the honour of hosting Christian Masset, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who spoke with Bertrand about #futureisclean. The aircraft will remain in Nanjing for approximately 10 days before the first possible take-off to cross the Pacific (first to Hawaii, then the continental US), the most challenging flight since the beginning of the RTW.