The solar-powered ultra-light airplane Solar Impulse 2 is grounded in Japan in a bit of bad luck.  The plane was en route from China to Hawaii, and was diverted to Nagoya because of bad weather.  But while on the ground, strong winds damaged the delicate wings. 

Crews guided the Solar Impulse 2 into an inflatable temporary hangar to protect it from any further damage until repairs could be made.  Pilot Bertrand Piccard insists it’s a minor setback.

“Before the team at Nagoya airport could inflate the mobile hangar, the wing had to be protected with a cover for the rain and the sun,” Piccard said.  There were so much wind and gusts that this cover started to shake on the wing and damaged an aileron on the trailing edge of the wing.  This of course will be repaired, the technical team already started to build some spare parts but it will keep us on the ground for at least one week before we can carry on and Andre to fly to Hawaii.”

“Andre” refers to Andre Borschberg, the plane’s other pilot.  The Solar Impulse 2 only seats one person, and so Borschberg and Piccard take turns piloting it on different legs of their round the world journey.

Hey, there are worse things than being stuck in Nagoya for a week.