The solar-powered Airbus Zephyr S has spent more than 30 days continuously in the air, beating its own record set in 2018. The unmanned vehicle flies high in the atmosphere to avoid commercial air traffic and adverse weather conditions.
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It has on-board batteries to keep it in the air overnight. Stopovers for recharging are not necessary. Energy is generated by solar cells on the skin of the craft.
Once to South America and back
Flight data shows that the aircraft flew from the test site in Arizona to Belize in Central America and back. A spokesperson for the United States Army Futures Command confirmed that the new flight tests were "designed to test the UAV's energy storage capacity, battery life and solar power".
See also: The world's first charging station for electric aviation
The flight record was achieved by the latest model of the solar-powered aircraft, which was originally designed and built in the UK. Zephyr was invented by Chris Kelleher, who died in 2015. Three years later, Airbus opened the first series production for this type of aircraft in Farnborough. (HS/mfo)
