Solar-powered plane's second cross-border flight cut short [video]

Swiss solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse Saturday took off for its second international flight from Brussels for Paris but turned back for the Belgian capital after a series of glitches.

The pioneering aircraft took off at 1637 GMT in cloudy conditions, according to images shown on its website www.solarimpulse.com. Heavy rain and strong winds had prevented it from taking off at 0230 GMT as scheduled.

"The flight is far from being smooth and there have been a series of problems ever since the take-off from Brussels was delayed due to strong ground winds," a blog said.

"Shortly after take-off, when the pilot tried to retract the landing gear there was an unusual noise," and he decided to abort the move, it said, adding that this meant the plane would fly more slowly and use up more solar power.

The plane then turned back for Brussels, a spokeswoman for Solar Impulse told AFP.
Solar Impulse HB-SIA, which has the wingspan of a large airliner but weighs no more than a saloon car, made history in July 2010 as the first manned plane to fly around the clock and through the night on the sun's energy.

Last month it completed its first international flight from Switzerland to Belgium.
HB-SIA relies on 12,000 solar cells on its 64-metre (200-foot) wings to charge the batteries that provide the energy for the 10-horsepower electric motors driving four propellers.

It holds the endurance and altitude records for a manned solar-powered aeroplane after staying aloft for 26 hours, 10 minutes and 19 seconds above Switzerland, flying at 9,235 metres (30,298 feet).

This time, the high-tech plane is expected to rise around 2,500 metres in altitude. The flight is being transmitted live on www.solarimpulse.com. The Solar Impulse team is aiming to make possible transamerican, transatlantic and round-the-world flights -- in stages -- in 2013 and 2014 using a slightly larger aircraft.

The 49th international air show at Le Bourget, just outside Paris, runs from June 20 to 26.

eGenius electric plane takes flight with Airbus backing

A team at the University of Stuttgart has completed the maiden flight of a new electric flying machine they have named eGenius. The aircraft successfully completed a 20-minute flight followed by a two-and-a-half hour trip.

The eGenius is capable of hitting 235 km/h (146 MPH) for up to 400 kilometers (248.5 miles). It is powered by a 60-kilowatt motor, weighs 850 kilograms (1,874 pounds), and has some big backing from the likes of Airbus.

University of Stuttgart

EV Aircraft ELEKTRA ONE performs first 30 min flight [video]

The Elektra One EV aircraft performed the first flight on 19 Mar. 2011 at the Augsburg Airport in Germany. Jon Karkow, an well known test pilot and aircraft engineer performed the first flight. Flight characteristics and engne parameter were tested.

The ultra lightweight aircraft weighs just 220 pounds, plus an additional 220 pound battery pack. With a 660 pound weight capacity, there is ample room for a more than just the pilot.

The test pilot was very satisfied with the results. Three flights were performed. The climbing rate was 400 ft/min. A new 30 min. flight was performed on 23 Mar. Only about 3kW from the total on board of 6kWh energy was used.

Over the next two weeks a new variable pitch propeller and retractable landing gear will be installed for further testing.

Solar UAV QinetiQ Zephyr records ratified

The flight in July over the US army Yuma proving ground by the Qinetiq ‘Zephyr’ has been ratified by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) as a world record for the longest unbroken time spent in the air by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The flight lasted 10 times longer than the previous duration record held by the RQ 4A Global Hawk.

• the absolute duration record for an Unmanned Air Vehicle – being filed at 336 hrs / 22 minutes
• the duration record for a UAV (in the U/1.c / 50-500Kg category) – time as above
• the absolute altitude record for a UAV (in the above category) – being filed at 70,740ft (21,561m)

Launched by hand, the aircraft flies by day on solar power delivered by amorphous silicon solar arrays that cover the aircraft’s wings and are no thicker than sheets of paper. These are supplied by Uni-Solar, the world’s largest producer of flexible solar panels. The solar arrays are also used to recharge the lithium-sulfur batteries that are used to power the aircraft by night and supplied by Sion Power Inc, a leading developer of the next high energy rechargeable battery technology. Together they provide an extremely high power to weight ratio on a continuous day/night cycle, thereby delivering persistent on station capabilities.

Around 50% larger than the previous version, Zephyr incorporates an entirely new wing design with a total wingspan of 22.5m to accommodate more batteries that are combined with a totally new integrated power management system. The entirely new aerodynamic shape also helps to reduce drag and improve performance. Zephyr’s ultra-lightweight carbon fibre design means it weighs in at just over 50Kg.

Previous records beaten include:

• Surpassing the previous world record for the longest flight for an unmanned air system (set at 30 hours 24 minutes by Northrop Grumman’s RQ-4A Global Hawk on 22 March 2001).
• Surpassing the Rutan Voyager milestone of 9 days (216hours) 3 minutes and 44 seconds airborne – previously the longest flight by an aeroplane without refuelling and set in Dec 1986. Quadrupling its own unofficial duration record of 82 hours, 37 minutes set in 2008