SOLAR-PLANE/LANDING Grounding of solar plane in Japan 'less risky' than Pacific attempt - spokesman

Record ID: 149942

  • Title: SOLAR-PLANE/LANDING Grounding of solar plane in Japan 'less risky' than Pacific attempt - spokesman
  • Date: 4th June 2015
  • Summary: NAGOYA, JAPAN (JUNE 1, 2015) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) PLANES PARKED AT NAGOYA AIRFIELD SOLAR PLANE FLYING MEDIA GATHERED AND LOOKING UP AT PLANE FROM BEHIND FENCE SOLAR PLANE FLYING MOON WITH SOLAR PLANE FLYING IN DISTANCE
  • Embargoed: 19th June 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Japan
  • Country: Japan
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA501YKN518YH4PA6B98NHVAOVL
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: A solar-powered plane attempting a round-the-world flight will cut short the seventh leg of its 35,000-km global (22,000-mile) journey, landing in Nagoya, western Japan, due to bad weather.
    The plane landed at a small airport in Nagoya just before 1500GMT.
    The Solar Impulse 2, a solar powered plane, left Nanjing, China on Sunday (May 31), to fly over the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii.
    A spokesman for the mission said the team was faced with only two options when bad weather set in.
    "Do we carry on towards Hawaii, knowing that when we get to day five of the planned flight that there's a cold front that we just can't cross and hope that the weather changes? The second option was to land at one of our alternate airports. Now every time we fly we have an alternate airport along the way. We've had this on every flight so far, in case of bad conditions or a problem with the airplane," said Conor Lennon shortly before the aircraft touched down.
    He added that the decision to land the plane in Japan was "much less risky" than attempting to cross the Pacific Ocean during bad weather.
    "This option was deemed to be much less risky. We knew that we could land there, we knew that the plane would be safe and we knew that the pilot would be safe. So in the end the decision was taken to land, for now, in Nagoya, in Japan".
    The plane, which is covered in solar cells, took off from Abu Dhabi in March.
    The journey across the Pacific Ocean was expected to be the most difficult stretch of the journey.
    Overall, the trip was expected to span approximately 25 flight days broken up into 12 legs at speeds between 50 and 100 kph (30 to 60 mph).
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