The British company BAE Systems and its subsidiary Prismatic have developed an electric flying machine powered by solar energy. Called PHASA-35, the autonomous unmanned aircraft would be able to fly for a year without having to land. He recently completed his first test flight on the basis of tests by the Australian Air Force at Woomera. The aircraft flew at an altitude of 2 kilometers, well below its real capacity.
#Future #Tech: #solar aircraft designed to stay aloft for * a year * makes #MaidenFlight. # PHASA35
► https://t.co/z6Z86VzPfZ via @nwtls pic.twitter.com/YLvoLUwGHJ
PHASA-35 was indeed designed to fly 20 kilometers high, Sky News reports on Monday, that is to say in the middle of the stratosphere. This positioning makes the British vehicle a perfect compromise between a classic plane and a satellite. The machine owes the exceptional autonomy announced by its manufacturers to its 35-meter wingspan and its immense wings covered with solar panels.
Future 5G relay?
These solar panels are capable of capturing light. Batteries store this energy during the day. The device allows the aircraft not to run out of energy once the sun has set. BAE Systems explains that it plans to use PHASA-35 as a relay for 5G communication networks, despite the approximately 40 kg that the equipment weighs.
The test of the electric plane was described as "first exceptional result" by Ian Muldowney, the director of engineering at BAE Systems. The latter estimated that the tests "show that we can meet the challenge of the requirements of the British government which asks the sector to develop its Future Air Combat System within ten years". The company is all the more satisfied since it only launched this autonomous aircraft project two years ago.
Economy
Airbus announces the elimination of 2,360 positions in its Defense and Space branch
Did you see ?
Dubai: French “airplane man” Vince Reffet performs historic flight at 1,800 m altitude
- High-Tech
- Solar energy
- Plane
- Australia