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André Borschberg

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André Borschberg FRSGS
Borschberg in 2011
Born (1952-12-13) 13 December 1952 (age 71)
Zürich, Switzerland
EducationÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, MS 1976
MIT Sloan, MS 1983
Known forCompleted the first round-the-world solar flight and the longest solo flight in an airplane of any kind: 117 hours and 52 minutes
Awards14 FAI world records
Aviation career
Famous flightsLongest solo solar flight ever in aviation history from Nagoya to Hawaii
Air forceSwiss Air Force

André Borschberg (born 13 December 1952) is a Swiss entrepreneur, explorer, pilot, and professional speaker. He is the co-founder and CEO of Solar Impulse,[1] a project aimed to design, build, and fly long-range manned solar-powered aircraft. In July 2016, he co-piloted and completed the first manned solar flight to circumnavigate the Earth.[2] His other ventures include being the co-founder and executive chairman of H55, a company that develops electric propulsion technology for the aviation industry [3] and serving as a member of the World Economic Forum Community of Experts.[4]

Borschberg holds several records for his work with the Solar Impulse project. On 7 July 2010, he completed the first 24-hour solar-powered flight, setting records for the longest manned solar-powered flight and the greatest height reached by a solar aircraft.[5] In July 2016, he completed the first manned round-the-world flight in a solar-powered aircraft.[2] During the Japan-to-Hawaii leg of the flight, he flew non-stop for 117 hours and 52 minutes. This broke Steve Fossett’s 2006 world record for the longest solo flight in an airplane of any kind.[6]

Borschberg currently holds 14 Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) world records, including: free distance, free distance along a course, straight distance, and the longest solo flight in a fixed-wing aircraft of any kind.[7]

For his role in delivering and piloting Solar Impulse, Borschberg was jointly awarded the Mungo Park Medal by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society in 2018, with Bertrand Piccard.[8]

Early life and education

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André Borschberg was born on 13 December 1952, in Zürich, Switzerland. He holds a master's degree in mechanical engineering from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and a master's degree in management science from the Sloan School of Management at Massacheusett's Institute of Technology.[4] He also holds professional certifications in Financial Management and Business Management from HEC Lausanne.

Career

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Fascinated by aviation from childhood, Borschberg trained as a pilot in the Swiss air force, first flying Venoms, then Hunters and Tigers for over 20 years.[9] Today he holds both professional airplane and helicopter pilot's licenses, and does aerobatics in his spare time.

Before starting his own entrepreneurial activities, Borschberg worked as a consultant at the strategy and management consultancy firm McKinsey & Company.

He initially went into partnership with venture capital company Lowe Finance. With a technical team from EPFL, he co-founded now-defunct Innovative Silicon, a company that produced a novel type of DRAM.[10]

Solar Impulse

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See also: Solar Impulse

Borschberg holds a management[11] and engineering position at Solar Impulse, and is also a pilot for the company.

Solar Impulse 2 on a runway in 2014.

Solar Impulse 1 missions

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  • Solar Night Flight:

On 7 July 2010, André Borschberg flew the Solar Impulse airplane for 26 hours,[12] the first flight through both day and night using only solar energy.

  • European Solar Flights:

Solar Impulse HB-SIA, piloted by André Borschberg, completed three international flights during the European campaign: Payerne to Brussels on 13 May (630 km), Brussels to Paris–Le Bourget on 14 June (395 km), and Paris-Le Bourget to Payerne on 3 July (426 km).

  • Crossing frontiers:

Solar Impulse, piloted alternately by André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard, made its first intercontinental flight in 2012 from Switzerland (Payerne) to Madrid, and then on to Morocco.[13]

  • Across America:

Solar Impulse completed the historic crossing of the United States over a 2-month period in the summer of 2013. Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg, the two pilots, flew from San Francisco to New York, stopping over in cities along the way.[14]

With the goal of the world's first solar-powered round the world flight initiated on 9 March 2015, Solar Impulse claimed "These flights have provided good learning opportunities in terms of slotting the solar aircraft into international air space and landing at international airports."[15]

FAI world records

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Borschberg has been awarded at least 8 FAI world records[7] flying with Solar Impulse: free distance, free distance along a course, straight distance, straight distance predeclared waypoints, distance along a course, duration, absolute altitude, gain of height. These records were achieved during 3 flights, taking place in 2010, 2012 and 2013.

Solar Impulse 2 missions

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In 2015 and 2016, Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard flew Solar Impulse 2 and achieved the first ever round-the-world solar flight.[16]

During one of the 17 legs of the flight, from 28 June to 3 July 2015, Borschberg flew Solar Impulse 2 between Nagoya and Kalaeloa, Hawaii for a duration of 4 days, 21 hours, and 52 minutes,[17] breaking the record of the longest solo flight previously held by Steve Fosset.

Objectif Soleil

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In 2017, Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard released an autobiographical book titled Objectif Soleil, about their experience through the Solar Impulse project.[18][19]

H55

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In early 2017, Borschberg co-founded the Swiss tech start-up H55, based in Sion. H55 is a technological spinoff of Solar Impulse. The company develops and sells electric propulsion technologies to aircraft manufacturers.[20]

In 2017 the company launched its first aircraft, the Aerol,[21][22] followed by the Bristell Energic in 2019.[23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Solar Impulse - Infocards". aroundtheworld.solarimpulse.com. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b Damian Carrington. "Solar plane makes history after completing round-the-world trip". The Guardian.
  3. ^ "The H55 Story". H55. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  4. ^ a b www.lasourisverte.ch, La Souris Verte-. "CEO, co-founder, pilot of Solar Impulse". Solar Impulse. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  5. ^ Alan Cowell (8 July 2010). "Solar-Powered Plane Flies for 26 Hours". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
  6. ^ McCormick, Rich (2 July 2015). "Solar Impulse 2 breaks the world record for the longest solo flight". The Verge. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Records | World Air Sports Federation". www.fai.org. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  8. ^ "Mungo Park Medal". The Royal Scottish Geographical Society. 4 June 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  9. ^ "Ten years ago, Borschberg flew up to 9235m onboard Solar Impulse | World Air Sports Federation". FÉDÉRATION AÉRONAUTIQUE INTERNATIONALE. 1 July 2020.
  10. ^ "Les Z-RAM d'Innovative Silicon répondent aux attentes des fabricants de mémoires en terme de tension et de substrat". electronique-mag.com (in French). Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  11. ^ "The H55 Story". H55. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
  12. ^ Press, Associated (8 July 2010). "Solar Impulse completes 24-hour flight". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  13. ^ "Bertrand Piccard; Explorer, c'est aller au delà des évidences", L'Express, 1 August 2012, pp. 6–9.
  14. ^ "Solar Impulse plane completes US journey in New York". BBC News. 6 July 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  15. ^ Aviation, Asian (2 September 2011). "Solar Impulse gathers support around Europe". Asian Aviation. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  16. ^ "Solar Impulse completes historic round-the-world trip". BBC News. 26 July 2016. Retrieved 16 September 2024.
  17. ^ Emma Howard, "Solar Impulse lands in Hawaii after a longest non-stop solo flight in history", The Guardian, Friday 3 July 2015 (page visited on 5 July 2015); FAI, [1] (page visited on Wednesday 8 July 2015).
  18. ^ "Solar Impulse, les coulisses de l'exploit". Le Parisien. 16 February 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2017..
  19. ^ Interview by Isabelle Hennebelle (17 February 2017). "Solar Impulse: "1000 solutions pour un monde durable"". lexpress.fr. Retrieved 8 June 2017..
  20. ^ "H55 livrera ses systèmes de propulsion électrique début 2022". Air et Cosmos (in French). 16 June 2020. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  21. ^ Adams, Eric (27 April 2017). "Want Electric Airplanes? Try Starting Small and Boring". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  22. ^ www.lasourisverte.ch, La Souris Verte-. "CEO, co-founder, pilot of Solar Impulse". Solar Impulse. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  23. ^ "An Aviation Pioneer Goes All In on Electric Planes". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
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