Solar plane lands in New York

NEW YORK: A solar-powered airplane finished crossing the United States on Saturday, landing in New York City after flying over the Statue of Liberty during its historic bid to circle the globe, the project team said.

The spindly, single-seat experimental aircraft, dubbed Solar Impulse 2, arrived at New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport at about 4am local time after it took off about five hours beforehand at Lehigh Valley International Airport in Pennsylvania, the team reported on the airplane’s website.

"Such a pleasure to land in #NYC! For the 14th time we celebrate sustainability," said the project’s co-founder Andre Borschberg on Twitter after flying over the city and the Statue of Liberty during the 14th leg of the trip around the globe.