Nonstop flight: the ultimate challenge
You probably remember Solar Impulse. Between 2015 and 2016, the solar-powered aircraft completed a round-the-world journey without fuel, flying solely on solar energy. It took 17 flight stages and nearly as many months to accomplish that feat. Today, the Climate Impulse project is pushing technological, human, and environmental ambition even further. The goal is to circle the planet in just nine days, nonstop, without a single drop of kerosene and without producing any CO₂ emissions.
Climate Impulse tackles the energy challenge of reducing carbon emissions with an aircraft powered by green hydrogen, a fuel produced entirely from renewable electricity.
Designed to reach an average speed of 180 km/h, the aircraft will operate like a flying laboratory, enabling numerous technical breakthroughs. One of the biggest challenges is keeping hydrogen in liquid form at -253°C for the entire duration of the flight. To achieve this, ultra-insulated tanks act like high-performance thermoses, maintaining the extremely low temperature needed throughout the journey.
Designed by explorer Bertrand Piccard, the pioneer behind Solar Impulse, and engineered by Raphaël Dinelli, sailor and aeronautical engineer, the aircraft is taking shape in Les Sables-d’Olonne in western France. The site is renowned for building high-performance racing yachts and advanced composite structures designed to withstand extreme conditions at sea. Those same capabilities are now being applied to Climate Impulse, a sustainable aviation prototype whose round-the-world flight is planned for 2029.
Orange, the project’s digital co-pilot
At Orange, we’re proud to be the official telecommunications partner for this pioneering adventure. Together with the creators of Climate Impulse, we’re turning an environmental challenge into an unprecedented opportunity for technological innovation. The first priority is clear: ensure a continuous connection between the cockpit and the ground, regardless of weather conditions or the aircraft’s location. To achieve this, we rely on our expertise in connectivity and cybersecurity. The goal is to be ready for anything, including the gradual arrival of post-quantum cryptology, which could make many current encryption techniques vulnerable to cyberattacks.
Climate Impulse also serves as a real-world testing ground for research and innovation. Orange’s encryption technologies will help ensure that flight data remains fully protected throughout the journey. We’re also exploring intrusion detection solutions, particularly to secure critical phases such as takeoff and landing against potential drone-related risks.
Innovating for tomorrow’s aviation sector
Orange’s technological partnership goes far beyond connectivity. We’re also providing advanced solutions to address the project’s many challenges. One of the key priorities is optimizing flight time. Artificial intelligence helps identify the best possible routes. To deal with changing atmospheric conditions, the teams are also creating digital twins: virtual replicas of the aircraft and the surrounding environment that combine real-time data with information gathered during testing. These models make it possible to analyze conditions continuously and adjust navigation to suggest the safest routes to pilots. As you can imagine, preparing a flight of this kind requires thousands of calculations in real time. But onboard computing equipment adds weight to the aircraft, which must be kept as light as possible to maximize range.
That’s why many of these calculations are performed from the ground, at a dedicated mission control center. The results are then transmitted to the pilot so they remain fully informed without compromising the aircraft’s performance. Climate Impulse can truly be described as a “Sky Lab”: a flying laboratory for innovation. For Orange, it’s an extraordinary project with unique technical resources. It allows us to test our innovations in extreme conditions before deploying them at scale for the public.
Pushing the boundaries
We firmly believe technological innovation can serve sustainability and help protect our planet. The partnership between Orange and Climate Impulse reflects a shared vision: leveraging innovation to create a cleaner, more efficient world. This flight isn’t just an extraordinary technical achievement. It’s also a powerful message of hope, showing that we can help decarbonize our society while pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.
