With Solar Impulse poised to land soon in New York City, it’s interesting to note the CAFE Foundation’s board members’ outing to the bay area helped greet the big, slow bird on its arrival from Hawaii. After 55 hours crossing the Pacific, and another seven giving everyone with a camera a “photo op” to capture Solar Impulse over Baghdad by the Bay, Solar Impulse passed over an eager welcoming crew.

CAFE makes its presence known. No reports as to whether Bertrand Piccard saw the display. Photo: John Palmerlee, CAFE
On May 23, John Palmerlee, Bruno Mombrinie and EAS coordinator Yolanka Wulff set up camp on the headlands above the Golden Gate Bridge, watched SI2 pass high overhead, pursued by a camera helicopter, and laid out their long black banner with white tape letters spelling “BIENVENUE BERTRAND” (Welcome Bertrand) in hopes that Bertrand Piccard would see their greeting as he flew by.
With darkness falling, the trio fought traffic to Moffett Field and arrived in time to see the landing and hear a speech from the probably exhausted pilot.

Landing crew towing SI2 onto ramp, after which Bertrand Piccard gave a speech greeting the excited crowd. Photo: John Palmerlee, CAFE
Leaving on May 2 for Phoenix, Solar Impulse set off on a three-stop trip to the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, where it now awaits a weather window to enable a short flight to New York, followed by another epic sea voyage to Europe.
See John Palmerlee’s excellent write-up on the CAFE Board’s outing.