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Solar plane to set out to cross U.S. in early May
MOUNTAIN VIEW, California (Reuters) - The first crossing of the United States by a solar-powered plane is expected to start in just over a month, its creators said on Thursday, as they make final preparations for an attempt two years from now at the first round-the-world flight without any fuel.
Swiss pilot Bertrand Piccard and project co-founder and pilot Andre Borschberg, whose Solar Impulse made its first intercontinental flight from Spain to Morocco last June, aim for their plane to take off from near San Francisco in early May and land at New York's John F. Kennedy airport about two months later.
With the wingspan of a jumbo jet and weighing the same as a small car, the Solar Impulse is just a test model for the team as they build a new aircraft they hope will circumnavigate the globe in 2015.
The project began in 2003 with a 10-year budget of 90 million euros ($112 million) and has involved engineers from Swiss lift maker Schindler and research aid from Belgian chemicals group Solvay -- backers who want to test new materials and technologies while also gaining brand recognition.
More: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL2N0CK1X820130328
