High-Altitude Endurance Flight Glider

Thales and Iridium have joined the Perlan project, the infamous ultra-high-altitude, continuous flight program.

The engineless glider can now avail itself of the Iridium communications network, offering the world's highest internet hot spot at more than 65,000 feet.

Perlan will use their newfound connectivity for inflight communications, as well as live streaming from both the glider and its Egret super tow plane. Currently, the team was unable to travel to Argentina as planned due to pandemic restrictions around the world. Perlan has used that downtime well, however, completing the installation of the Thales Flightlink equipment in late 2021. 

“We look forward to Perlan 2 carrying the Thales logo as well as one of the company’s most cutting-edge communication solutions to even greater heights,” said Ed Warnock, CEO of The Perlan Project.

“By exploring the stratosphere in an airborne research vehicle that creates zero pollution, we hope to unlock discoveries never possible before. Through this exciting partnership with Thales, we also look forward to inspiring new generations of scientists, engineers and pilots in environmentally conscious aviation.”  

“We are delighted to support Airbus Perlan Mission II because we believe the project aligns with Thales’ own strategies for future, greener aviation and the environment,” said Marc Duval Destin, Vice-President Strategy, Product Policy and Innovation for Thales’ Flight Avionics activities. ”We hope that the live stream will encourage a new generation of young people to consider careers in aerospace, science and engineering.” 

FMI: www.perlanproject.org