Solar flight

High-altitude flight powered by the sun

PUSHING THE LIMITS

The sun’s rays bathe our planet with vast amounts of energy – approximately 885 million terawatt hours every year. At Airbus, we are working to use this alternative renewable energy source to power high-endurance stratospheric flight. Our advances in solar cell technology enable unmanned aerial vehicles to stay aloft in the stratosphere for extended periods, using only sunlight as energy.

Our work in solar flight is focused on:

- Developing advanced photovoltaic solar panels that are lighter, more flexible and capable of capturing more energy per surface m²

- Converting captured solar energy into electrical energy to power an electric-propulsion system and other onboard equipment

- Harnessing solar energy into a rechargeable energy storage system, thereby enabling the aircraft to fly at night with unlimited autonomy

Taking unmanned aerial vehicles into the stratosphere

Our flagship programme, Zephyr, is a high-altitude pseudo-satellite that is powered exclusively by solar power. Known as a high-altitude platform station (HAPS), it can fly non-stop for months at a time. Zephyr provides two key services: it can relay high-quality imagery and live video, and it also serves as a communications tower in the sky, capable of being seamlessly integrated into mobile operator networks.

Discover Zephyr

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