Crossing frontiers – Flight to Morocco – Last preparation before take-off © Solar Impulse | Jean Revillard
Bertrand Piccard successfully brings the HB-SIA to Rabat
The crowds cheered as the HB-SIA landed in Morocco’s Rabat-Salé international airport at 23:30 (UTC+1) after 19 hours of flight. It was a spectacular site with representatives of the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN), journalists, invitees and, of course, the Solar Impulse team that had impatiently waited to complete this symbolic intercontinental leg of the 2012 Crossing Frontiers mission.
“Aside from technical and political reasons behind the decision to fly to Morocco, simply the flight over the Gibraltar straight was a magical moment and represents one of the highlights of my carrier as an aeronaut,” said Bertrand Piccard as the ground crew opened the cockpit.
Since November 2011, both MASEN and the Solar Impulse team have worked very hard to make this event possible. The arrival of the solar airplane is a wonderful apex to the months of preparations and growing expectations.
“We are Solar Impulse’s first intercontinental landing and we are ready to host this worldwide premier, this historical moment, as we are also landing with it,” said Mr. Bakkoury, President of MASEN. “It is an important moment for the MASEN. As initiators of another innovative project, the world’s largest thermo-solar power plant, we share a common message with Solar Impulse; a strong one: solar energy no longer restricted to the scientific world but is becoming an integrative part of daily. We will begin production in 2014, coinciding with Solar Impulse’s world tour.”
“This flight marks a new stage in the history of the project because we have reached another continent,” added André Borschberg, in consensus with Mr. Bakkoury’s comments “After almost 20 hours of flight we landed with a full set of batteries. This is extraordinary as it represents an increase in confidence in new technologies.”
Official events for youth and adult audiences, seminars and conferences organized by MASEN will take place throughout the week in Rabat in an effort to raise awareness about the possibilities clean technologies can offer. So don’t miss out on the photos and videos that will be posted daily on our website and the blog throughout the week directly from Rabat!
Takeoff time: 0322z
LDG: 2230z
Duration: 19:08
Average Ground Speed: 28kts
Battery SOC @ landing: 95%
Total Distance: 448 NM
Altitude over street of Gibraltar: 22616ft
Landing RWY: 03
Crossing of street of Gibraltar: 1435z
Highest Altitude: 27000ft
Gibraltar Crossing
This is a historical moment for the Solar Impulse team and for solar aviation. Bertrand Piccard just crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, the passage separating Europe from Africa, in the cockpit of the HB-SIA. He crossed around 16:00 (UTC+2) and is now heading straight into the direction of Tangier at an altitude of approximately 7’000m.
Elâ had a quick talk with Bertrand: “The scenery is just incredible, I see clouds on one side which reminds me of the « Aletsch Glacier» and the Atlantic see on the other side.” Photos will be available when Bertrand comes back on earth!
Most of you might think that flying towards warmer and sunnier climates is ideal for the solar aircraft. Yet, there are other meteorological aspects that need to be taken into consideration in these regions. The summer solstice is approaching (21 June), and with it, the intensity of direct sunlight. The heating of the ground results in an increase in vertical winds, better known as turbulence, which can destabilize the aircraft or, worse, disengage it.
For this reason the team of meteorologists, modeling and simulation specialists are key to the smooth progress of the flight. Aside from obvious and visible climate obstacles like fog and rain, the most important data that needs to be analyzed for a given flight are the:
Take-off and landing conditions. Crosswinds and headwinds must not exceed 5 knots and 7 knots respectively.
Reliability of meteorological data
Surface conditions (thermal inversion and low level jets, i.e. strong winds at less than 400m)
Conditions of altitude (change in winds at each altitude profile)
This flight is faced with very favorable weather conditions; there are no storms in sight and turbulence is at a minimum throughout the flight. Nevertheless, the meteorologists have to prepare detailed weather predictions for two alternate airports along the way, in this case Seville (Spain) and Tangier (Morocco).
The final challenge for this flight will be faced at the time of landing. The wind situation will improve during the evening while the Meteorological Team and the Mission Control Center work closely with the pilot to find the perfect approach and landing window.
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