SYDNEY – The distinction of operating world’s longest flight may not be retained by Singapore Airlines soon as an Australian airline plans to introduce the longest flight, surprising experts in aviation industry.
Singapore Airlines currently operates the longest flight in the world which spans 15,340km from JFK to Singapore Changi Airport; however, Qantas is gearing up to steal the title.
The company plans to launch a nonstop flight from Sydney to London in late 2025. The duration of the flight would be 20-hours and it will cover 17,020 kilometres in its journey from Sydney Airport to Heathrow Airport.
According to figures collected by global travel data provider OAG, the distance covered by the world’s longest flight has increased by 33 per cent since 1997.
Historically, most of the longest flights have departed from the US but when Qantas’ new route launches, it will be amongst few ultra-long-haul flights that do not fly off from the US.
Though the announcement has been made recently, Qantas has been planning the world’s longest flight as part of an initiative called “Project Sunrise” since 2017. The firm has been calling the initiative ‘the final frontier of aviation’ on its website.
Qantas’ flight will utilize an Airbus A350-1000 jet which will reportedly carry up to 238 passengers across four travel classes; approximately, 40 per cent of seats will be premium class.
Responding to the affect that the flight would have on the environment, Qantas claims the planes will be carbon neutral and have 25 per cent less CO2 emissions per seat.
Singapore Airlines has been operating the world’s longest flight for years now but the firm doesn’t hold the title for the longest non-stop commercial flight ever. This record was set by Air Tahiti Nui in March 2020 when Covid restrictions forced the plane to bypass its usual stopover in Los Angeles and fly direct from Tahiti to Paris; the distance covered came out to be 15,715 kilometres.
Other ultra-long-haul flights include Singapore to Newark (15,325 km), Perth to London (14,500 km), Melbourne to Dallas (14,471 km), and Auckland to New York (14,207 km).
