Notebook
TECHNOLOGY
World’s only manned
solar plane takes to skies
Latest advance in
eco-friendly air travel
prepares for European tour
If Icarus were around, he
would convince us that sun
and flying aren’t a good
combination. But he’s not,
so we’ll marvel at Solar
Flight’s sun-harnessing
progress instead.
The Swiss company has
been at the sharp end of solar
flight for 25 years and, this
month, it’s attempting a tour
of Europe with its Sunseeker
II, the only manned solarpowered
plane in flight.
6 / WWW.SHORTLIST.COM
The aircraft can be
seen at the e-Flight Expo
taking place this week in
Friedrichshafen, Germany,
and afterwards, Solar Flight
plans to take the plane on
a scenic tour of Italy, France,
Spain, Switzerland, Austria,
Hungary and Slovenia.
The craft’s first
incarnation – christened
Sunseeker I, unsurprisingly
– flew across the US in 1990
in a record time of just over
five days (with 21 stopovers),
but there have been one or
two technological advances
in those 19 years.
That’s largely down to
Sunseeker II’s 5bhp hybrid
engine, fuelled by lithium
polymer batteries and, of
course, the sun. It takes off
and increases altitude with
the help of four battery packs
in the wings. However, once
above cloud level, it can soar
for hours powered purely by
the sun’s rays, which, thanks
to a solar-cell surface on the
wings, fully recharge the
batteries in 90 minutes.
But while this is zeroemission
travel, it’s not
exactly going to force your
adrenal glands into
submission. Sunseeker II flies
at around 40mph on direct
solar power, rising to 80mph
with the addition of battery
power. The pace is pleasant
enough to keep the canopy
open and, reportedly, birds
often fly alongside. Certainly
better than wax wings,
that’s for sure.
Solar-Flight.com
Release the
news hounds
Once above cloud level, the
Sunseeker II can soar for hours
powered purely by the sun
Friends and family were
concerned that Plane had
taken the crash diet too far
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