Solar Flight Blog

First SUNSEEKER flight in 2012

Eric Raymond — Fri, 11 May 2012 20:50:29 +0000

Despite endless problems and delays, I have found a spot on the ceiling of a hanger here in Lesce Bled, Slovenia.

Some pictures from today, below average conditions, but still I was able to climb to over 11,000 ft, and tour the Kamniske Alps, between Ljubljana and Klagenfurt, Austria.

Flight from Slovenj Gradec to Triglav

Eric Raymond — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 21:30:04 +0000

Today I ferried the SUNSEEKER from Slovenj Gradec to Lesce Bled airport, on its way to Switzerland for an airshow.

Approaching Mount Triglav, the highest peak in Slovenia, I came upon Sierra India, a local ASH-25 sailplane.

All day the flying was difficult, with headwinds and turbulent, poor soaring conditions.

Slovenj Gradec flights July, 2011

Eric Raymond — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 08:52:02 +0000

Goal flight to Bovec, in the Julian Alps

Eric Raymond — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 08:00:38 +0000

Today Irena and I met with the Major of the town of Bovec, trying to find an airport where we can get a hanger for the new two seater. I flew the SUNSEEKER from Lesce to Bovec, which is not far, but the terrain was formidable! Very high mountains, a high plateu blocked my way, until I could climb high enough.

Then I took off from the grass strip in Bovec, and flew back to Lesce, visiting Triglav along the way. Outstanding soaring!

Wing Test Section October 2010

Eric Raymond — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 21:43:29 +0000

The lightest, smoothest solar cell integration yet!

SUNSEEKER III progress report

Eric Raymond — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 15:58:05 +0000

Solar cell stringing by Irena. Laminator on the right. Cell placement for the tail surface.

Carbon fiber pre-preg cut for outboard wing spar caps

Nick Meligari, our summer volunteer prepares the spar oven for the bake.

Nick holds up the upper and lower spar caps to the wing template. Look carefully, and you can see the spar caps drawn on the template

Open house for SUNSEEKER III unvieling

Eric Raymond — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 19:53:57 +0000

An event on April 3 was held in the Solarni Horizont workshop to show off what has been built so far of the new two seater.

The cockpit is well along, and the tailboom was also positioned where it will be mounted, with the motor pod and prop mocked up.

Roman Susnik was there with a motor housing for the new custom made 20 kw motor he is designing for this new solar powered two seater.

You can see more of Roman’s electric motors for aircraft at http://www.glider-one.si/

More pictures are on the news tab of the solar flight home page

Progress report from Poland

Eric Raymond — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 21:01:08 +0000

The campaign to build the Solar Stemme fuselage enters its third week, with good progress. The tail boom is 90% finished. The halves are ready to join, in the molds.

Here is the inner side, with peel ply still on.

The cockpit is 55% finished, with the honeycomb having gone in today.

We started molding the canopy frame, using high modulus uni-carbon to increase the stiffness.

One seat is finished, and the other 30%. Each part needs to be cured under vacuum three days, to build up the sandwich stucture in three different cure cycles.

The team here at the Allstar glider factory continues to lend expert assistance to this build, especialy our host Andrej Papiorek, who really is an expert at composite glider design.

SUNSEEKER III fuselage under construction

Eric Raymond — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:50:44 +0000

First days of fuselage fabrication at the Allstar Glider factory, in southern Poland.

The first layer of light carbon fabric being cut for the outer skin of the tail boom and fin.

Cured outer skin, with spar caps visible.

Nomex honeycomb bonded in for the sandwich core.

University Stuttgart donates use of Icare wing molds for SUNSEEKER III

Eric Raymond — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:46:02 +0000

The Icare designer Proffessor Voit Nitschmann agreed to the long term loan of the Icare molds for Solar Flight’s new airplane.

You can learn more about Icare at http://www.ifb.uni-stuttgart.de/index.php/forschung/flugzeugentwurf/icare

Also invoved in the planning and logistics were Len Schumann, Karl Kasser, and Micro Schulz, all Stuttgart alumni.

These molds will allow very high qulality wings to be molded at the lightest possible weight. The molds are being readied for the 10 meter inner wing section, to be built in our new shop in Radovljica, Slovenia.

Only small changes will be needed to the SUNSEEKER III design, to take advantage of this opportunity.

Micro Schulz test flying Icare in 1996

As you can see from the picture, Icare has a beautiful 25 meter wing. The Stuttgarter’s hope to have Icare flying next summer, and to stage a distance contest between SUNSEEKER II and Icare, probably in Germany. Sponsors for this event are being sought.

Proffesor Nitschmann’s design firm www.sfl-gmbh.de is very freindly to our project, and we hope to work togeather in the future on solar powered aircraft.