The solar impulse aircraft is now on a three-day mission of continuous flying. Amirah Ibrahim follows with the future aircraft Solar Impulse is undergoing a simulated flight for 72-hour �ê" from 21 to 24 February 2012 �ê" in a full-size mock-up cockpit of the second airplane, currently under construction. A statement by the Solar Impulse team said that Andr�� Borschberg , one of two inventors of the new aircraft, would put the design and configuration of the cockpit to the test, and evaluate the demands that a flight lasting several days would make on the human body. The new Solar Impulse aircraft can travel around the world powered only by solar energy. The purpose of this simulation is in part to accumulate experience in the management of the pilot's vital needs on a long-duration flight. The test will allow the pilot and co-founder of the project to assess the configuration of the cockpit and simulate the effects on the human body of a flight of several days, explained the statement. "There is not much experience to draw on in previous aviation history concerning fatigue and nutritional management, so this will be a unique opportunity for the Solar Impulse team to try out various concepts designed in cooperation with project partners." The simulation will also allow Solar Impulse staff to evaluate the cockpit design of the aircraft programmed to fly round the world in 2014. This second airplane, currently under construction, needs to have a more spacious, ergonomically efficient cockpit, so that Bertrand Piccard and Andr�� Borschberg �ê" taking turns to fly it �ê" can remain airborne for several days with their essential equipment and supplies. Several cooperation agreements have been signed bringing together the expertise needed to tackle the human challenge of remaining at the controls of an aircraft like Solar Impulse for 3 days and nights. Doctors from Hirslanden are helping the Solar Impulse design team make sure that the cockpit space is optimal ergonomically. Lantal has made its revolutionary pneumatic cushion comfort system available to Solar Impulse, and is developing a special seat to cater for the pilot's need to shift position for various reasons, including attending to calls of nature. Nestl�� Health Science is drawing up an individual nutritional plan catering for each pilot's physiological requirements. Bertrand Piccard and Andr�� Borschberg are both devising personalised rest strategies based on their body rhythms and needs, so that each can control his fatigue level whilst remaining alert, and vigilant for changes in flight conditions. The EPFL (Swiss Federal Polytechnic Institute) and Hirslanden are helping them with these strategies and will be present throughout the simulation to evaluate the concentration and fatigue levels of the pilot at frequent intervals, using specially designed tests. Interaction with the mission controllers will also be of vital importance, and various procedures will be tested on this occasion. The first prototype of the plane, covered with photovoltaic cells and powered only by solar energy, made a series of European flights in mid 2011, and the plane was shown at the Brussels and Paris Air shows. "We will continue building the new aircraft and expect to have a test flight in 2013," added a spokeswoman of Solar Impulse.
