Solar Impulse 2 has completed the second leg of its attempt to fly around the world in a solar flight, landing in Ahmedabad after about 13 hours of flight from Muscat, Oman - its first stopover in the flight attempt.

Piloted by Bertrand Piccard, initiator and chairman of Solar Impulse, the landing occured in Ahmedabad at 11:25pm local time (5:55pm GMT), reaching an altitude of 8,534 meters with a ground speed of roughly 100 knots.

Flying across the Arabian Sea, Piccard set a distance world record for straight distance, pre-declared waypoints by travelling 1,468 km during Si2’s flight.

The record of straight distance, pre-declared waypoints 1,386.5 km was previously held by André Borschberg, Si2’s CEO and co-founder, during the Si1 Across America mission in 2013.

"More important to us than the world record is the fact that Solar Impulse 2 is the first solar airplane to fly in Asia. It is also an honour of being welcomed by the state of Gujarat, a visionary state which leads India in terms of solar installation,” said Piccard and Borschberg.

The Solar Impulse team will stay four days in Ahmedabad for visits and events organised with the support of partners in order to promote renewable energies and clean technologies, like the ones making it possible for this revolutionary prototype to fly day and night with zero fuel.

The next legs of the round the world attempt will include Varanasi (India) and Mandalay (Myanmar) before reaching China. The pilots of Solar Impulse will continue to take turns flying in the single-seater aircraft. – TradeArabia News Service