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Altran Accompanies Solar Impulse on its First Trans-Mediterranean Flight
PARIS, May 30, 2012/PRNewswire/ --
Actively involved in the Solar Impulse project since 2003, Altran, global leader in
innovation and high-tech engineering consulting, now accompanies the solar plane in its
first trans-Mediterranean flight from Spain to Morocco.
The aim of the Solar Impulse project is to continually go beyond the threshold and
draw attention to the immense potential of renewable energies. For more than a decade,
Altran's team of experts has been striving to meet this challenge and transform this dream
into a reality.
After the first day and night fuel-free flight in 2010 and the first European flight
in 2011, the solar plane is now preparing for a 2,500 km, round trip voyage between
Switzerland and Morocco. Carried out in several stages, this exclusively solar-powered
flight will bring Solar Impulse closer to reaching its goal of achieving the world tour
planned in 2014. The plane's mission in 2012 is therefore essential for testing and
improving the organisation of future flights.
Carrying out a successful solar flight is extremely complex and raises three types of
challenges for the teams involved, namely:
- Technical challenges, since the teams must be able to manage a series of
consecutive flights sometimes exceeding 20 hours, as well as the plane's entry into
multiple air-traffic control zones.
- Meteorological challenges, because the plane will be required to fly through
complex zones, such as the Pyrenees mountain range and making its first-ever
trans-Mediterranean crossing.
- Logistical and operational challenges, requiring the monitoring of the plane
for around two months. This will be carried out by a mobile on-the-ground logistics
team which will follow the plane's flight path with support provided by a Mission
Control Centre (MCC) based in Payerne, Switzerland.
Within the MCC, two of Altran's experts, Christophe Béesau and Stéphane Yong, are
playing a key role to assure the success of the mission. Throughout the flight, their
expertise will be called upon to determine the choice of flight path based on a set of
complex criteria such as weather conditions and air-traffic control, as well as energy and
pilot management. To ensure that the team is ready for all eventualities, Christophe and
Stéphane have designed a simulator that recalculates the different possible flight paths
at regular intervals. This is a crucial challenge as the solar plane prepares for its
first-ever trans-Mediterranean flight.
Commenting on the development of Altran in India, "this event is a continuing
testimony of the commitment of the Altran group to continue to develop cutting edge
technology solutions for the Aerospace Industry. Altran India is already seen as India's
foremost Aerospace Engineering consulting company and the expansion plans of the company
will involve leveraging the groups capabilities to drive growth in the identified domain",
said Mr. Sanjay Kumar, CEO of Altran India.
Share the adventure on the Altran group's Twitter feed (@Altran)
[http://www.twitter.com/Altran ]
About Altran
As global leader in innovation and high-tech engineering consulting, Altran supports
companies in the creation and development of their new products and services. For thirty
years, the Group has been providing services to key players in the fields of Aerospace,
Automotive, Energy, Railways, Finance, Healthcare, Telecoms...
Present at every stage of project development from new-technology strategic planning
through to manufacturing, Altran is able to capitalise on its expertise in four key
domains: Product Lifecycle Management, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering &
Embedded Systems and IT Systems.
With a global network of 17,000 collaborators (including 15,000 consultants),
throughout more than 20 countries, and 500 major clients, the Group reported sales of
EUR1,420m in 2011.
http://www.altran.com
Follow us on Twitter @Altran_Press [https://twitter.com/#!/Altran_Press ]
Source: Altran
Press contact: Emmanuel Bardet, +33(0)1-46-17-45-00, press@altran.com
Altran Accompanies Solar Impulse on its First Trans-Mediterranean Flight
PARIS, May 30, 2012/PRNewswire/ --
Actively involved in the Solar Impulse project since 2003, Altran, global leader in
innovation and high-tech engineering consulting, now accompanies the solar plane in its
first trans-Mediterranean flight from Spain to Morocco.
The aim of the Solar Impulse project is to continually go beyond the threshold and
draw attention to the immense potential of renewable energies. For more than a decade,
Altran's team of experts has been striving to meet this challenge and transform this dream
into a reality.
After the first day and night fuel-free flight in 2010 and the first European flight
in 2011, the solar plane is now preparing for a 2,500 km, round trip voyage between
Switzerland and Morocco. Carried out in several stages, this exclusively solar-powered
flight will bring Solar Impulse closer to reaching its goal of achieving the world tour
planned in 2014. The plane's mission in 2012 is therefore essential for testing and
improving the organisation of future flights.
Carrying out a successful solar flight is extremely complex and raises three types of
challenges for the teams involved, namely:
- Technical challenges, since the teams must be able to manage a series of
consecutive flights sometimes exceeding 20 hours, as well as the plane's entry into
multiple air-traffic control zones.
- Meteorological challenges, because the plane will be required to fly through
complex zones, such as the Pyrenees mountain range and making its first-ever
trans-Mediterranean crossing.
- Logistical and operational challenges, requiring the monitoring of the plane
for around two months. This will be carried out by a mobile on-the-ground logistics
team which will follow the plane's flight path with support provided by a Mission
Control Centre (MCC) based in Payerne, Switzerland.
Within the MCC, two of Altran's experts, Christophe Béesau and Stéphane Yong, are
playing a key role to assure the success of the mission. Throughout the flight, their
expertise will be called upon to determine the choice of flight path based on a set of
complex criteria such as weather conditions and air-traffic control, as well as energy and
pilot management. To ensure that the team is ready for all eventualities, Christophe and
Stéphane have designed a simulator that recalculates the different possible flight paths
at regular intervals. This is a crucial challenge as the solar plane prepares for its
first-ever trans-Mediterranean flight.
Commenting on the development of Altran in India, "this event is a continuing
testimony of the commitment of the Altran group to continue to develop cutting edge
technology solutions for the Aerospace Industry. Altran India is already seen as India's
foremost Aerospace Engineering consulting company and the expansion plans of the company
will involve leveraging the groups capabilities to drive growth in the identified domain",
said Mr. Sanjay Kumar, CEO of Altran India.
Share the adventure on the Altran group's Twitter feed (@Altran)
[http://www.twitter.com/Altran ]
About Altran
As global leader in innovation and high-tech engineering consulting, Altran supports
companies in the creation and development of their new products and services. For thirty
years, the Group has been providing services to key players in the fields of Aerospace,
Automotive, Energy, Railways, Finance, Healthcare, Telecoms...
Present at every stage of project development from new-technology strategic planning
through to manufacturing, Altran is able to capitalise on its expertise in four key
domains: Product Lifecycle Management, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering &
Embedded Systems and IT Systems.
With a global network of 17,000 collaborators (including 15,000 consultants),
throughout more than 20 countries, and 500 major clients, the Group reported sales of
EUR1,420m in 2011.
http://www.altran.com
Follow us on Twitter @Altran_Press [https://twitter.com/#!/Altran_Press ]
Source: Altran
Press contact: Emmanuel Bardet, +33(0)1-46-17-45-00, press@altran.com