Solar plane promotes sustainability
André Borschberg’s record attempt carries a serious message to the industry on sustainability
Today, the man behind the Solar Impulse aeroplane – the first plane in history to fly day and night without any fuel, appeared in a webcast to explain how solar power can be best put to commercial use.
The record-breaking 26 hour flight in July 2010 was a triumph for André Borschberg, the CEO, co-founder and pilot of the solar powered plane.
Being an engineer himself, he was behind turning the dream into a reality and was the driving force behind co-ordinating a team 65 engineers and technical specialists to construct the aircraft and prepare for flight missions.
The challenge is proving to industry that solar power is bankable. He admits that it was a struggle to get backing for the project initially.
“Despite feasibility studies at the beginning manufacturers said the flight wasn’t possible. But it was, we just needed the right people, technologies and materials for the project. We have proved that dreams can still be achieved by using less energy. This can work for all forms of transportation – solar energy can have a role there too”.
He added: “The message behind our round the world flight was that the aviation sector and wider industry is aware of the potential of solar technology in relation to emission targets, position in the market place and energy and cost saving solutions”.
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