Photo: Photo by James D Morgan/Qantas
Last year, carrier Singapore Airlines announced plans to run a flight from Singapore to New York. That would have been world’s longest non-stop commercial flight, estimated to last 18 hours and 25 minutes, if it weren't for the Australians from Qantas, who set the bar even higher this weekend.
Qantas has been researching both the feasibility of record-haul flights and their effects for a while now, in a project it calls Sunrise. The first airborne test of the project ended on Sunday morning in Sydney.
19 hours and 16 minutes before the flight landed in Australian city, it took off from New York, 10,066 miles away (16,200 km). The successful flight set a new record when it comes to the world's longest commercial flight, and also marked the first time a direct flight has connected the two cities.
For the task, the airline used a repurposed Boeing 787-9 that was partly filled with passengers. To make sure the airplane can safely complete the run, Qantas was careful to give the plane enough fuel as a little weight as possible, by allowing only 49 passengers and crew to climb on board.
This flight was not only a test for the plane itself, but also of the effects such a long time in the air has on human beings. Qantas collected what data it could about things like brain waves, melatonin levels and alertness for the pilots, and the general health and well-being of the passengers. Whatever data Qantas gets from the experiments it will implement on its regular long-haul flights.
As for Project Sunrise, it will continue with two more experimental runs, one linking Sydney to London in November and another trip from New York to Sydney in December. „A decision on Project Sunrise is expected by the end of the year,” says the company, without saying if it that could mean we'll get a non-stop flight from Australia to the east coast any time soon.
19 hours and 16 minutes before the flight landed in Australian city, it took off from New York, 10,066 miles away (16,200 km). The successful flight set a new record when it comes to the world's longest commercial flight, and also marked the first time a direct flight has connected the two cities.
For the task, the airline used a repurposed Boeing 787-9 that was partly filled with passengers. To make sure the airplane can safely complete the run, Qantas was careful to give the plane enough fuel as a little weight as possible, by allowing only 49 passengers and crew to climb on board.
This flight was not only a test for the plane itself, but also of the effects such a long time in the air has on human beings. Qantas collected what data it could about things like brain waves, melatonin levels and alertness for the pilots, and the general health and well-being of the passengers. Whatever data Qantas gets from the experiments it will implement on its regular long-haul flights.
As for Project Sunrise, it will continue with two more experimental runs, one linking Sydney to London in November and another trip from New York to Sydney in December. „A decision on Project Sunrise is expected by the end of the year,” says the company, without saying if it that could mean we'll get a non-stop flight from Australia to the east coast any time soon.
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