Australia prepares to launch world’s longest nonstop commercial flight From Sydney to New York in 22 hours

Australia’s national carrier, Qantas Airways, is preparing to break aviation records with plans to launch the world’s longest nonstop commercial flights, linking Sydney directly with New York City and London.

The ultra-long-haul journeys, covering roughly 16,000 kilometres, are expected to take around 22 hours with a fleet of 12 Airbus A350-1000ULRs, cutting travel time by up to four hours compared with current one-stop routes, as aviation websites report.

Newly released images show the first aircraft designated for these services has rolled off Airbus' final assembly line in Toulouse, France. Fitted with high-thrust Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines and the addition of an extra 20,000-liter fuel tank, the plane is now set to undergo ground testing ahead of a planned commercial launch in 2027.

The flights will surpass the current record for the world’s longest nonstop journey, held by XiamenAir, which operates a 19-hour, 20-minute service between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Fuzhou Changle International Airport in East China.

To make the extended journey more comfortable, Qantas is configuring its Airbus A350-1000 aircraft with just 238 seats—significantly fewer than the roughly 400 seats typically found on the model. More than 40% of the cabin will be dedicated to premium seating, including flat-bed suites and full-length wardrobes.

Homage to aviation history

Qantas has named the initiative “Project Sunrise,” a reference to its historic “Double Sunrise” flights that were operating during World War II.

The original operation began in 1943, after air links between Australia and the UK were severed following the fall of Singapore in 1942 to Japan. As the need to re-establish safe airspace connections between Australia and the Britain emerged, aircraft departed from a seaplane base in Crawley, near Perth, and travelled to a Royal Air Force base at Lake Koggala—then part of Ceylon, which is modern-day Sri Lanka.

The service earned its nickname because passengers and crew witnessed two sunrises during the journey, which could last anywhere between 27 and 33 hours. Although distance was just over 6,480 kilometres, the trip took a long time as the seaplanes were able to cruise only at around 200 km/h and could carry only three passengers, along with limited mail.

These endurance flights remain the longest passenger airline services ever operated in terms of duration, underscoring the legacy behind Qantas’s latest push to redefine long-haul travel.

By Nazrin Sadigova