Worlds Longest Flight. Coming.

[Guest1]

 

Crewing, crew rotation (rest period for the turnaround) and crew onboard accommodation will be interesting.

Qantas strikes multibillion-dollar deal that could create the world's longest flight, insiders say

rhogg@insider.com (Ryan Hogg) - 4h ago

 

© APThe deal is reportedly worth $25 billion. AP

• Qantas reaches deal with Airbus to make planes for 20-hour London-Sydney route by 2025, per Reuters. 
• The deal for more than 150 jets could reach $25 billion, per local outlet The West Australian.
• Qantas' chief executive had called the route the "Holy Grail" for the airline. 

The Boeing 777X won't be delivered to airlines until 2025. Take a look at the enormous new flagship Boeing hopes will be its redemption.

• Boeing's newest aircraft, the Boeing 777X, flew for the first time in January 2020 after lengthy delays.
• It's the largest twin-engine jet in the world and Boeing's latest new aircraft to fly since the grounding of the 737 Max.
• Boeing said in April that certification delays have pushed its first delivery back to 2025.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Boeing's latest history-making plane continues to be delayed. 

The Boeing 777X will not be delivered until late 2023, its manufacturer announced on Wednesday, further delaying the aircraft's debut well-beyond the planned time frame of 2020. Boeing attributed the delay to numerous factors including the pandemic, reduced demand, and new certification requirements. 

The twin-engine jet first graced the skies in January 2020 when it lifted off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington following a day of weather delays. A total of four test aircraft now roam the skies, pushing the limits of the aircraft in advance of its certification to fly passengers.

Boeing designed the 777X to be the first next-generation variant of Boeing's popular 777 product line, which first flew in the 1990s and currently sees service with the world's leading airlines. The plane is equipped with new engines developed by General Electric and a longer pair of wings, enabling it to carry more passengers while operating more efficiently than its predecessor aircraft, effectively replacing the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet. 

When it first took flight, the 777X became the largest twin-engine jet aircraft to ever fly. Though a milestone aircraft for Boeing, its 2020 aerial debut was hampered by the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max and the subsequent worldwide grounding of the narrow-body jet due to issues with the aircraft's software stemming from its development.

Take a look at the plane Boeing hopes will be its redemption.  

Read the original article on Business Insider

 

The agreement, reportedly worth billions of dollars, would see the Australian airliner order Airbus SE A350-1000 jets from the European manufacturer and is expected to be completed by mid-2025.

The plan, labeled "Project Sunrise," is expected to be announced at a Sydney Hangar on Monday. At nearly 20 hours, the "Kangaroo Route" could be the longest commercial flight on record. 

The West Australian newspaper reported that the value at list prices, if orders for more than 150 Airbus jets went through, would be close to $25 billion. This would be the largest order in the airline's 102-year history. 

Qantas spokesperson referred to the Monday announcement but offered no further comment. Airbus didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment outside normal working hours.

The flight time would eclipse those of competitors, and rival the current record flight of more than 19 hours between New York and Singapore. In 2018, Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce told BBC Breakfast that the Sydney-London route would be the "Holy Grail" for the company, after beginning routes from the West of Australia to the UK capital.

The breakthrough comes amid renewed struggles for US-based rival Boeing in its attempt to crack marathon flights. In its first-quarter earnings announcement, the company delayed the rollout of its 777x aircraft, which was planned to travel from London to Sydney, until 2025. 

Qantas had previously switched its domestic fleet from Boeing to Airbus in December. 

Cathay Pacific Airways might have laid claim to the world's longest flight by distance in a bid to avoid Russian and Ukrainian airspace following Putin's invasion.

A source told Insider's Taylor Rains that Cathay had planned a contingency route over 10,000 miles long between New York and Hong Kong, but that they relied on heavy tailwinds. 

Read the original article on Business Insider

 

 

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[mo32a]

You won't get me on any 20 hour flight.

[Guest1]

3 hours ago, mo32a said:

You won't get me on any 20 hour flight.

Passenger or crew or both?

[Kip Powick]

The only reason I would endure a 20 hour flight would be if I was the winner of a multimillion dollar Lotto and had to go in person  to "there" in order to  collect the winnings.

Even if I had a "bestest"  buddy living at one of the destinations and he  died......the widow would have to be happy with just  a Hallmark  sympathy card......

 

I agree with mo32a

[GDR]

I'd rather than do that than having to make one or two stops to get from SYD to LHR. I remember one time it took 16 1/2 hours to get from YVR to HKG.  Another 3 1/2 hrs wouldn't make that much difference but then I did have a pretty comfortable seat and some time in a bunk. Just as long as the seats aren't too cramped.

[mo32a]

18 hours ago, Kargokings said:

Passenger or crew or both?

As a passenger I would rather have a two-hour layover somewhere, get off the aircraft, go to a lounge, have some food and refreshments, wash up then fly on.