First round-the-world tour in a solar airplane!

Published on July 26th, 2016

On Tuesday 26 July, Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg succeeded in their crazy dream of achieving the first ever Round-The-World Solar Flight. By landing back in Abu Dhabi after a total of 23 days of flight and 43'041 km travelled in a 17 leg journey, Si2 has proven that clean technologies can achieve the impossible. Beyond this historic milestone, the two Swiss pioneers will continue to urge the global implementation of energy efficient solutions through the creation of the International Committee for Clean Technologies and leverage the expertise and technology gained over the years in Solar Impulse by launching new innovative projects, such as the development of solar powered drones.

Team Abu Dhabi — The pilots and the team in Abu Dhabi, just after the landing

“We have flown 40’000 kilometers (around the world) without fuel, but there is still a lot to be done to encourage a worldwide implementation of clean technologies and to motivate everyone to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels in their daily lives, hence the creation of the International Committee for Clean Technologies,” said Initiator, Chairman and Pilot Bertrand Piccard addressing the crowd while exiting the cockpit of Si2.

“Solar Impulse is of course very well positioned to contribute to the next generations of manned or unmanned electric aircrafts. By capitalizing on the engineering skills and expertise gained over the past decade, we will continue to work to encourage concrete innovations and disruptive solutions,” concluded CEO, Co-Founder and also Pilot André Borschberg.

Vice President of Switzerland Doris Leuthard welcomed this extraordinary accomplishment with a message of optimism for the international community: “Solar Impulse is succeeding where Ikarus failed. An idea born in Switzerland has shown to the world that by investing in innovation and sustainable clean energies, all our dreams can come true. Let's follow on this great success by good implementation.”