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They made it to Hawaii

An Anonymous Coward writes:

A plane powered by the sun’s rays has landed in Hawaii after a record-breaking five-day journey across the Pacific Ocean from Japan.

http://westhawaiitoday.com/news/state-wire/solar-powered-plane-lands-hawaii-after-flight-japan [westhawaiitoday.com]

Solar Impulse Plane Lands in Hawaii

Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

Solar Impulse, the aeroplane that is powered only by the sun, has landed in Hawaii after making a historic 7,200km flight across the Pacific from Japan.

Pilot Andre Borschberg brought the vehicle gently down on to the runway of Kalaeloa Airport at 05:55 local time (15:55 GMT; 16:55 BST).

The distance covered and the time spent in the air - 118 hours - are records for manned, solar-powered flight.

The duration is also an absolute record for a solo, un-refuelled journey.

Mr Borschberg's time betters that of the American adventurer Steve Fossett who spent 76 hours aloft in a single-seater jet in 2006.

Despite being in the cockpit for so long, the Swiss pilot told the BBC that he did not feel that tired: "Interestingly, not really.

"I am also astonished. We got so much support during the flight from so many people; it gave me so much energy."

Pretty amazing feat. Not only the longest solo flight, but also without burning a drop of fuel.