A solar powered plane...I don't think so!

In debates with alternative energy nut cases I continually ask one simple question. How do I get twenty tons of cargo 1000 miles on green energy. I have yet to get an answer to that simple question and I don't think I have one now.

Solar powered plane flies over Mediterranean

Solar Impulse, a solar powered plane dreamed up by Bertrand Piccard, takes off for its "last rehearsal" before a round-the-world attempt in 2014.

The Solar Impulse took off on the world's first cross-Mediterranean flight from an airfield in western Switzerland and is scheduled to make a stop-over in Spain after a 20-hour flight, before finally flying to the Moroccan capital Rabat on Monday.

I Googled the distance, it's 1020 miles. I can drive that faster.

...The Solar Impulse project began in 2003 with a 10-year budget of 90 million euros (£72m) and has involved engineers from Swiss lift maker Schindler and research aid from Belgian chemicals group Solvay.

The plane, which requires 12,000 solar cells, embarked on its first flight in April 2010 and completed a 26-hour flight three months later, setting a record flying time for a solar powered aircraft.

In 2011, the plane and its crew completed the world's first international flights with a solar-powered airplane as they landed at Brussels and Paris airports.

With an average flying speed of 70 kmph (44 mph), Solar Impulse is not an immediate threat to commercial jets, which can easily cruise at more than 10 times that speed.

Project leaders also acknowledged it had been a major challenge to fit a slow-flying plane into the commercial air traffic system.

The last line brings out a critical point the enviro nuts keep missing. They never ask "Is there a demand for this thing?" A classic example is the Chevy Volt where you need to pay people money to buy it.

At a cruise of 44 MPH I'm surprised it generates enough lift to stay afloat. Not to mention I really doubt it can handle to passengers and cargo of a 737, much less a 787.

Another massive waste of resources down a green hole. Over 112 million dollars to not do something a used Cessna can do better.