Qantas Completes Record-Breaking 24-Hour Test Flight for Project Sunrise

Commercial aviation reached a new milestone when a specially adapted Airbus jet landed in Toulouse on Tuesday following a grueling 24-hour and 24-minute journey from Melbourne. The flight covered an astonishing 23,075 kilometers without stopping, crossing three continents, two oceans, and witnessing two sunsets and two dawns along the way. This monumental test flight serves as a crucial dry run for Project Sunrise, the Australian airline’s ambitious effort to launch the world’s longest direct commercial passenger services.

Project Sunrise Test Flight From Melbourne to Toulouse

July 28 (Reuters) – Airbus (AIR.PA), opens new tab completed a marathon test flight lasting more than 24 hours that triggered a surge in online tracking, when an A350 jet being developed for record-beating commercial flights touched down in France from Melbourne on Tuesday. The test marks a key step in Qantas’ (QAN.AX), opens new tab Project Sunrise, which aims to launch the world’s longest commercial passenger services and reshape long-haul travel by eliminating stopovers between Australia and Europe.

Airbus has been conducting a two-month test campaign on the aircraft since June. Airbus said the aircraft, which boasts a specially designed extra fuel tank, remained in the air for 24 hours and 24 minutes, covering 23,075 km (14,338 miles) in a route over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans without stopping, before landing at the plane’s factory in Toulouse in south-west France.

Engineering the Ultra-Long-Range Airbus A350

The ULR in its designation stands for ultra long distance, a feat made possible by an additional 20,000-litre rear centre fuel tank being fitted to Airbus’s A350-1000 model. The specially adapted A350-1000ULR airliner is due to debut with the Australian carrier’s nonstop Sydney-London route from 2027. The flight was operated by four Airbus test pilots and five test engineers, who were tasked with putting the aircraft’s systems through their paces, including the 20,000-litre fuel tank that allows it to fly commercially non-stop for up to 22 hours.

Global Observers and Flight Tracking Records

Flightradar24 Tracking and Commercial Records

Flight-tracking provider Flightradar24 said the trip was the second-most-tracked flight ever on its channels — behind a 2024 flight carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin — with more than 3.6 million people following its progress northwards via Canada. The 23,076-kilometre (14,339-mile) journey crossed three continents and two oceans, and through two sunsets and two dawns, and was one of the most-watched flights shown on the Flightradar24 tracking site.

Tuesday’s flight is thought to be the longest ever by a commercial plane, beating the previous record of 22 hours and 42 minutes, set by a Boeing 777-200LR in 2005 between Hong Kong and London via the Pacific in 2005. In a test last week, the plane flew from Toulouse to Melbourne via the Indian Ocean in just over 19 hours. On its outbound flight, last week, from Toulouse to Melbourne, the test aircraft flew 17,000 kilometres in 19 hours and 12 minutes.

Reshaping the Kangaroo Route From Sydney to London

Qantas Sydney to London Services and Schedule

The flights, set to begin take off from 2027, will mark the first time flights from the east coast will complete the Kangaroo Route without a stop over. In 2005, a Boe… The specially adapted Airbus A350-1000ULR is one of 12 aircraft set to be delivered to Qantas as part of Project Sunrise, which is due to deliver non-stop Sydney to London flights from 2027. When launched, the route will become the world’s longest commercial passenger service.

The return trip simulated a trajectory the plane would take once put into commercial service. Qantas plans to start offering non-stop flights between London and Sydney from October 2027. Its return flight to Toulouse will take off from Melbourne on July 27 as part of the flight test program. Two Qantas pilots will be on board for the journey back to France, the company said.