Guest Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Qantas to run test flights on world's longest route https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49430711 Qantas will run test services of its planned 19-hour flights to determine whether passengers and crew can withstand the marathon journeys. The airline wants to operate non-stop services from Sydney to London and New York by as soon as 2022. If launched, the services would be the world's longest direct flights. The trial flights will begin later this year, each carrying up to 40 passengers who will have their health monitored on the journey. Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said direct flights from the east coast of Australia to London and New York represented the "final frontier in aviation". "Ultra-long haul flying presents a lot of common sense questions about the comfort and wellbeing of passengers and crew", Mr Joyce said in a statement. How UK-Australia travel evolved to one flight Can long-haul air travel also be low cost? The airline said non-stop flights from New York and London to Sydney would take about 19 hours each, subject to wind and weather conditions. It will conduct three test flights and participants - made up of crew and Qantas employees - will be fitted with wearable technology devices. Sleep patterns, along with food and beverage consumption, will be tracked to determine the impact on health and the body clock. The flights will run on Boeing 787-9s. The airline said it would make a decision on whether to start the flights by the end of the year. Longest flights Competition in the ultra-long haul aviation market has intensified in recent years, with various airlines flying extended routes. Singapore Airlines launched a near-19 hour journey from Singapore to New York last year, which is currently the world's longest commercial flight. Last year, Qantas began a 17-hour non-stop service from Perth to London, while Qatar runs a 17.5-hour service between Auckland and Doha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fido Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Not me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super 80 Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 I'm willing in principle, but not in a slaveship economy seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Some passengers may be willing but what about the crews? At the very least they will need a few days to recover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Don't throw all passengers under the bus. C3 had folks who travelled LGW-YYZ-YYR-HNL-(Fiji)-SYD : 3/4 the way around the world, IN A B752 (!) because it was cheaper than LHR-SYD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 6 minutes ago, Moon The Loon said: Don't throw all passengers under the bus. C3 had folks who travelled LGW-YYZ-YYR-HNL-(Fiji)-SYD : 3/4 the way around the world, IN A B752 (!) because it was cheaper than LHR-SYD. Not throwing passengers under the bus but def. concerned re the negative effects on the operating crews. At least QF is looking into that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Anything is possible. The question is will efforts (extra crew, scheduling departure times to match circadian body clock, etc) be sufficient or just barely adequate and will the profit margin offset the extra costs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 51 minutes ago, seeker said: Anything is possible. The question is will efforts (extra crew, scheduling departure times to match circadian body clock, etc) be sufficient or just barely adequate and will the profit margin offset the extra costs? back in the day Canadian Pacific Airlines flew DC6 aircraft from YVR to TYO. Due to the long hours in flight, they maintained a staff house in Tokyo where the crew could rest up for a couple of days before (crew exchange) operating the next leg to HKG. It seems when one considers crew rest needs, current airlines do not look after their operating crews as well as they did in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AIP Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 41 minutes ago, Marshall said: It seems when one considers crew rest needs, current airlines do not look after their operating crews as well as they did in the past. Seriously ?? Did the airlines such as CP have state of the art rest facilities onboard the aircraft ?? Did they fly high above the weather in relative comfort, or were they bouncing along in the cloud tops as the DC6 often did ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 30 minutes ago, AIP said: Seriously ?? Did the airlines such as CP have state of the art rest facilities onboard the aircraft ?? Did they fly high above the weather in relative comfort, or were they bouncing along in the cloud tops as the DC6 often did ??? all of the above, crew rest was a seat in first class for the cockpit crew. As for the cabin crew, I don't know. the crew house was for the pilots. ' As for state of the art, when your system is screwed up by time change , sleep loss, is there such a thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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