Imagine spending 19 hours on a single airplane without stopping, traveling nearly halfway around the world. On Friday, a new ultra long-distance aircraft made this journey reality when it landed in Melbourne, Australia, after flying non-stop from Toulouse, France.
The plane, an Airbus A350-1000ULR, was specially built for the Australian airline Qantas. It departed from the Airbus factory in France on Thursday morning and completed the nearly 17,000-kilometer journey in just over 19 hours. Aviation fans around the world watched the historic flight online, with more than 67,000 people tracking its path on flightradar24.com.
A team of four test pilots and five flight engineers operated the test flight. They plan to fly back to France on Monday on a 23-hour return flight to test critical airplane systems, including fuel transfer and air conditioning. Because of the long flight time, crew members take regular rest breaks using data systems to monitor fatigue.
To make such long journeys possible, the aircraft has a special extra fuel tank that holds 20,000 liters of fuel. This allows the plane to fly up to 18,500 kilometers without refueling. Qantas ordered 12 of these planes, each configured with 238 seats to give passengers more space and comfort.
Qantas plans to use these aircraft for its "Project Sunrise" program, offering non-stop commercial flights between Sydney and London by October 2027. Passengers will soon be able to travel between Australia and Europe directly without stopping for layovers.