Over the past decade we’ve seen a trend whereby airlines have added an incredible number of new ultra long haul flights. Admittedly the pandemic temporarily reversed that trend for a couple of years, given border restrictions and the decrease in business travel.
We’ve now turned a corner when it comes to travel demand, and have seen airlines resume most ultra long haul flights. Not only that, but in the past year we’ve even seen several new ultra long haul routes revealed.
In this post I wanted to summarize the world’s longest flights, what other ultra long haul flights might be on the horizon, and share why these are more practical than in the past.
Why ultra long haul flights are more practical than ever
Why have we seen airlines launch so many ultra long haul flights in the past several years? It primarily comes down to new aircraft technology. In the past decade the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 have become the backbone of many carriers’ long haul fleets, and these planes are great for airlines and passengers:
The planes are ultra long range, and can operate some nonstop flights that previous generation aircraft couldn’t
The planes have lower capacity than previous generation aircraft (like the Boeing 747), which opens up more viable markets; it’s much easier to profitably fill 250 seats than it is to profitably fill 400 seats
The planes have great economics, and per-passenger fuel burn is significantly lower than previous generation aircraft
So yeah, long range, fuel efficient, low capacity aircraft have done wonders for airlines when it comes to the viability of ultra long haul city pairs. Many routes that could have previously never been profitable now make sense.
What are the world’s longest flights? Here they are, starting with the longest (I’m including the airline that operates the route, the distance, and the aircraft type used):
Singapore (SIN) to New York (JFK) / Singapore Airlines / 9,537 miles / Airbus A350-900ULR
Singapore (SIN) to Newark (EWR) / Singapore Airlines / 9,523 miles / Airbus A350-900ULR
Doha (DOH) to Auckland (AKL) / Qatar Airways / 9,032 miles / Airbus A350-1000
Perth (PER) to London (LHR) / Qantas / 9,010 miles / Boeing 787-9
Melbourne (MEL) to Dallas (DFW) / Qantas / 8,992 miles / Boeing 787-9
Auckland (AKL) to New York (JFK) / Air New Zealand & Qantas / 8,828 miles / Boeing 787-9
Dubai (DXB) to Auckland (AKL) / Emirates / 8,824 miles / Airbus A380
Singapore (SIN) to Los Angeles (LAX) / Singapore Airlines / 8,770 miles / Airbus A350-900
Bangalore (BLR) to San Francisco (SFO) / Air India / 8,701 miles / Boeing 777-200LR
Houston (IAH) to Sydney (SYD) / United Airlines / 8,596 miles / Boeing 787-9 (resumes October 29, 2023)
Sydney (SYD) to Dallas (DFW) / Qantas / 8,578 miles / Boeing 787-9
Manila (MNL) to New York (JFK) / Philippine Airlines / 8,520 miles / Airbus A350-900
Singapore (SIN) to San Francisco (SFO) / Singapore Airlines & United Airlines / 8,446 miles / Airbus A350-900 & Boeing 787-9
Atlanta (ATL) to Johannesburg (JNB) / Delta / 8,439 miles / Airbus A350-900
Mumbai (BOM) to San Francisco (SFO) / Air India / 8,406 miles / Boeing 777-200LR
Dubai (DXB) to Los Angeles (LAX) / Emirates / 8,339 miles / Airbus A380
Jeddah (JED) to Los Angeles (LAX) / Saudia / 8,332 miles / Boeing 777-300ER
Doha (DOH) to Los Angeles (LAX) / Qatar Airways / 8,306 miles / Airbus A350-1000
Perth (PER) to Rome (FCO) / Qantas / 8,298 miles / Boeing 787-9 (ends October 2, 2023)
Manila (MNL) to Toronto (YYZ) / Philippine Airlines / 8,221 miles / Airbus A350-900
