It was revealed when the longest commercial flight in the world would depart

The airline’s approximately full-day, non-stop flights from Sydney and Melbourne will fly to London and New York from the end of 2025, details have now been revealed.

Confirming the news that has popped up in recent days, Qantas has announced an order from the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus for 12 A350-1000 aircraft. These will be operated on so-called “Project Sunrise” flights from 2025 onwards.

The airline said the planes will “be able to fly directly from Australia to any other city in the world” while consuming 25 per cent less fuel than airplanes currently in the air.

A Qantas Airbus A350-1000 aircraft during a test flight over the port of Sydney

The wide-body aircraft can provide a flying experience for up to 238 passengers, with a larger-than-usual cabin where the monotony of a multi-hour seat can be easily interrupted with a little movement.

CEO Alan Joyce emphasized that when designing the cabins of the A350-1000 aircraft, maximum comfort was paramount, whether it was first class or economy class. The planned 20-hour Sydney-London flight will be the longest commercial flight in the world.

Sharp criticism

However, experts refute Qantas’ claim that their non-stop flights will significantly reduce aircraft emissions. Atmosfair data estimates that an average round trip between Sydney and London, with a stop in Singapore, currently emits around 3,500 kilograms of CO2 per passenger.

Dr Tony Webber, a former senior economist at Qantas who currently heads the Airline Intelligence research team and works at the University of New South Wales Aviation School, said ultra-long-haul flights were “generally not very fuel efficient at all”.

It is true that reducing the number of take-offs and landings burns less fuel, but if an aircraft has to stay in the air for 20 hours without refueling, it will also have to carry a huge amount of fuel with it. This extra fuel means extra weight, which in turn means that more fuel needs to be burned in flight. “ This would result in the aircraft carrying less cargo and passengers. This, Webber said, could prompt Qantas to opt for a more spacious seat configuration on its A350s, as it can’t maximize the number of seats in line with available cabin space.

Although Qantas has yet to disclose the cost of ultra-long-haul flights, Webber has predicted that non-stop routes will be at least $ 300 more expensive per person and will increase depending on how much time the route saves the passenger.

Professor Bruce Thompson, head of the School of Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne, warned that long-term flight can also have detrimental effects on physical and mental health, such as an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis.Thompson said the airline’s management didn’t do enough research to clearly determine how safe the 20-hour non-stop flight was. Previous studies commissioned by Qantas on passenger experience on long-haul flights have suggested the use of on-board exercise bikes and virtual reality technology.

Michael Kaine, the national secretary of the Transport Workers Union, has been critical of Qantas’s spending on new aircraft after thousands of employees lost their jobs during the epidemic.

Qantas received about $ 2 billion in government wage subsidies for the coronavirus, but it turned out the airline had arguably outsourced 2,000 groundhandling jobs.

“While many outsourced workers are still struggling to make a living, flights are regularly delayed and passengers often complain that their checked baggage is lost, with Qantas scattering money on new aircraft and routes,” Kaine said.

Such can be the interior of new flights

Continue shopping with the airline

Qantas has ordered an additional 40 Airbus aircraft – the A321XLR and A220-300 – for domestic operation, with the first aircraft to be delivered next year. The value of the orders, according to the leaked news, kills billions of dollars. Although the airline argues that the exact price of the new aircraft is a trade secret, all that has been revealed is that they receive a significant discount over the standard fare. According to Reuters, the total cost could kick in at $ 6 billion.However, the airline’s CEO says the range and economy of the new aircraft will allow the introduction of new direct routes, including better service to regional cities, yet these new aircraft will reduce emissions by at least 15 per cent when running on fossil fuels.

Meanwhile, Qantas Group, which also includes discount airline Jetstar, released its third-quarter financial update on Monday. Although the revival of the domestic and some international travel markets has boosted revenue, the airline is still expecting significant losses this year. Net debt, on the other hand, fell from $ 5.5 billion at the end of December to $ 4.5 billion at the end of April.

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