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UN chief hails innovation, experimentation when meeting with solar-powered plane pilots

Xinhua, June 14, 2016 Adjust font size:

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday met with the two pilots of a solar-powered plane on their global-circling voyage, hailing innovation and experimentation for a more sustainable future.

"I have followed this audacious, historic and transformative expedition from day one," Ban said when meeting with Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, pilots of the Solar Impulse 2, at John F. Kennedy International Airport, during the expedition's stopover in New York City.

"As we see before us, innovation and experimentation will help us move into a sustainable future," said Ban, noting that "the plane's technologies can help halve the world's energy consumption, save natural resources and improve our quality of life."

The Solar Impulse 2, the spindly, single-seat experimental aircraft the size of a 747 with the weight of a car and the power of a small motorcycle, uses no fossil fuels and has no emissions.

Its 35,000-km round-the-world journey began in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates in March 2015. It made stops in countries including Oman, India, China and Japan. New York City is its 14th stop around the world. Endi