The first non-stop flight from Australia to Britain lasted about 17 hours
According to BBC, this flight is part of Qantas's ambitious plan to introduce ultra-long-haul flights into its schedule. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce called the new flight a turning point. Speaking before the first flight, he recalled that the very first Qantas flights between Australia and Britain — called the kangaroo route — took four days and included seven stops.
The authorities of Western Australia also hope for an increase in tourist flow thanks to the new direct flight.
The aircraft with 200 passengers and 16 crew members on board flew to Britain from Perth — the largest city and capital of the state of Western Australia, located in southwestern Australia on the coast of the Indian Ocean. To make such a long flight more comfortable, the aircraft provides improved air quality and low noise levels in the cabin.
Some passengers agreed to share data on their sleep and well-being during the flight with researchers from the University of Sydney. They were fitted with special devices that, among other things, recorded their psychological state, dietary habits, and hydration levels.
In Britain, some aviation enthusiasts tracked the aircraft's route from the morning and eagerly awaited its landing. The Premier of Western Australia, Mark McGowan, wrote on Twitter after the aircraft landed in London: "A new era of travel and opportunities for the Western Australian economy has officially begun." The new Perth-London flight is approximately three hours faster than other flights that include stops in the Middle East for refueling or aircraft changes.
This flight is the second longest in the world after Qatar Airways' flight from Doha to Auckland (14,529 km), according to data from the International Air Transport Association. Other carriers, including Emirates and United Airlines, have also operated non-stop flights over 14,000 kilometers.
In 2017, United Airlines launched a flight between Los Angeles and Singapore — the longest non-stop flight from the US. The world's longest flight was Singapore Airlines' 15,300 km route from Singapore to New York. However, the flights were discontinued in 2013.