Twelve Airbus machines ordered
Qantas announces longest direct flight
05/02/2022 08:07
In less than 20 hours, people should soon be able to fly from Australia’s east coast to London. The approximately 17,700-kilometer route would be the longest non-stop scheduled flight connection. The Airbus machines ordered for this could also create a direct connection to Germany.
The Australian airline Qantas plans to add the longest non-stop flights in the world to its route network by the end of 2025. The flights are to connect Australian cities on the east coast such as Sydney and Melbourne with London and New York in around 19 hours. Qantas announced that the twelve Airbus A350-1000 aircraft ordered for this purpose could also connect other cities such as Frankfurt and Paris directly with destinations Down Under in the future.
The so-called Project Sunrise has finally found a solution to the “tyranny of distance” that has traditionally made travel to Australia so difficult, said airline boss Alan Joyce. In the future, every city will only be a flight away from Australia. The new generation of aircraft types will open up completely different possibilities in the future.
Qantas had already tested the approximately 17,700-kilometer direct connection from London to Sydney at the end of 2019 with a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The flight lasted 19 hours and 19 minutes. The route was actually supposed to be included in the program as early as 2022, but the plan had to be postponed due to the corona pandemic and the long border closures. Singapore Airlines currently offers the longest non-stop scheduled flight: it has been connecting Singapore with New York since 2018 without changing planes. The machines cover the 15,300-kilometer route in just under 18 hours.
Qantas will carry 238 passengers in four classes (First, Business, Premium Economy, Economy) with the Airbus A350-1000, it said. “The cabin is specifically configured for enhanced comfort on long flights and includes a center comfort zone and more spacious seating in Premium Economy and Economy cabins,” said Qantas.