Unmanned Flight Record for QinetQ’s Zephyr

Unmanned flight record is set for Zephyr. It flew for 82 hours and 37 minutes from the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona.

The previous record for an unmanned flight was 30 hours and 24 minutes. A Northrop Grumman Global Hawk set that record in 2001.

Launched by hand, Zephyr is an ultra-lightweight carbon-fibre aircraft. By day it flies on solar power generated by amorphous silicon solar arrays no thicker than sheets of paper that cover the aircraft’s wings. By night it is powered by rechargeable lithium-sulphur batteries, supplied by SION Power Inc, which are recharged during the day using solar power.
The flight trial at Yuma took place between 28 and 31 July in the harsh conditions of the Sonoran Desert in mid summer with temperatures up to 45°C (113°F). Zephyr was flown on autopilot and via satellite communications to a maximum altitude of more than 60,000ft. The trial included a military utility assessment of a US Government communications payload.