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Solar-powered aircraft leaves Seville for Cairo

Xinhua, July 12, 2016 Adjust font size:

The aircraft Solar Impulse II, powered completely by solar energy, on Monday left the Spanish city of Seville to attempt to land in Cairo, Egypt on Wednesday.

The route will be between 48 and 72 hours long depending on weather conditions. This will be the penultimate flight of the plane that will travel to Abu Dhabi afterwards.

Andre Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, who have been working on the aircraft for more than a decade, will pilot the aircraft. Borschberg will pilot the plane from Seville to Cairo crossing seven countries, after which Piccard will fly to Abu Dhabi.

Borschberg said that the trip was "meaningful as it is my last flight in this round-the-world epic. I am happy that we're close to the end but also prudent knowing that it is not done yet. I have to stay really focused."

The aircraft had been in Seville, in the south of Spain, for two weeks after successfully crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

Solar Impulse II is able to fly night and day without any fossil fuel. It travels at between 45 and 55 km/hour reaching an altitude of 8,500 meters. The plane is wider than a 747 jumbo jet and weighs 2.3 tons. Endit