Qantas’ ‘Project Sunrise’ To Offer Longest Nonstop Flights

Qantas said it is ordering 12 Airbus A350-1000s to operate the planned new flights. The aircraft “will have the range for direct flights between Australia and any city in the world,” the company said. The planes will also have cabins specially designed to increase passenger comfort on long-haul flights. And will include common areas called wellbeing zones.

Qantas also said the new A350s would carry just 238 passengers in first, business, premium economy and economy classes. For comparison, the A350-1000 can carry up to 410 passengers in a typical three-class configuration and 480 in a single-class configuration.

“New types of aircraft make new things possible,” said Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce. “Throughout our history, the aircraft we’ve flown have defined the era we’re in. The 707 introduced the jet age, the 747 democratized travel and the A380 brought a completely new level of comfort. The A350 and Project Sunrise will make any city just one flight away from Australia. It’s the last frontier and the final fix for the tyranny of distance.”

Qantas’ planned new nonstop flights would take more than 19 hours and would be the longest scheduled commercial airline flights available. Qantas currently flies nonstop from Melbourne to Dallas in about 17 hours and 30 minutes, and Singapore Airlines flies from Singapore to New York in just under 19 hours.

Qantas did not respond immediately to inquiries about whether the new flights were long enough to require changes to size and schedules of its flight crews. 

The airline’s long-haul plans are part of a broad program to revamp its international and domestic fleets and route networks over the next decade. The plan includes renewal of its domestic fleet beginning next year with orders for 40 Airbus A321XLR and A220 aircraft, and 94 purchase order rights over the next 10 years.