Qantas to Give World's Longest Flight a Test Run

Image: PHOTO: Qantas Airbus 380 passenger jet over Sydney Harbor. (photo courtesy of Quantas Airways) (Qantas Airways)
Image: PHOTO: Qantas Airbus 380 passenger jet over Sydney Harbor. (photo courtesy of Quantas Airways) (Qantas Airways)
Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 12:35 AM ET, Fri August 23, 2019

Well, you didn't think they were just going to foist this on anyone without a trial run, did you?

Qantas Airways plans to test of a pair of proposed nonstop 19-hour flights - the world's longest - that are set to operate beginning in 2022.

The flights go from Sydney to New York and Sydney to London, respectively.

The objective of the test runs?

Simple. Can passengers and crew withstand that many hours in the air?

The planned tests for later this year will have less than 20 percent capacity during the flights - only about 40 passengers, each of whom, along with the crew, will have their health monitored during the lengthy route.

The world's current longest direct nonstop flight is 18 hours and 25 minutes aboard Singapore Airlines' route from Singapore to New York.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said direct flights from Sydney to London and New York represent 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," he noted in a statement.

Three different trial runs are planned. Passengers - virtually all who are Qantas employees - will be outfitted with wearable technology devices and have their sleep patterns and food and beverage intake monitored.


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Rich Thomaselli

Rich Thomaselli

Associate Writer

Editor Associate Writer true 9281 14744 Rich Thomaselli has written for TravelPulse since 2014 and has been a professional journalist for nearly 40 years. His work has appeared in USA Today, the New York Times and New York Yankees publications. He is an 11-time writ

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