Airbus completed an Airbus A350-1000ULR record flight from Melbourne to Toulouse that lasted 24 hours and 25 minutes, giving Qantas Airways a very public proof point for the nonstop Australia-to-Europe and Australia-to-US routes it wants to sell in 2027.
The aircraft, built for Qantas’ Project Sunrise program, took off from Melbourne on July 27 and landed at Airbus’ Toulouse base on July 28. Airbus said the return leg covered 12,460 nautical miles. Flightradar24 data showed a routing that crossed the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and North America.
The Melbourne-to-France run followed an outbound test from Toulouse to Melbourne. That first long-haul leg departed on July 23 and landed on July 24 after 19 hours and 13 minutes, according to Airbus.
What is the Airbus A350-1000ULR record flight?
The A350-1000ULR is a long-range version of Airbus’ A350-1000 developed for Qantas’ planned nonstop flights from Sydney to London and New York. The test flight matters because those routes are expected to run longer than today’s scheduled commercial flights, with Qantas projecting a maximum flight time of 21 hours and 40 minutes.
Airbus says the aircraft gets its extra reach from a rear center fuel tank that can hold 20,900 liters, or 5,521 gallons. That added tank extends range by 1,000 nautical miles, enough margin for routes of nearly 10,000 nautical miles between Sydney and either London or New York.
Qantas has ordered 12 of the aircraft for Project Sunrise. The airline says the jets will carry up to 238 passengers in commercial service, which Qantas describes as the lowest seat density of any A350-1000 in operation worldwide. The cabin plan includes self-serve food and drink stations and a wellbeing zone where passengers can stretch.
How crews handled a 24-hour test flight
Ultra-long-haul flying is partly a fuel problem and partly a human one. Airbus fitted the aircraft with a twin flight crew rest compartment so pilots can enter and leave rest areas without disturbing one another during commercial operations.
Xavier Pepin, the Airbus test pilot who captained the return flight, said in an Airbus post that the crew used four-hour shifts for each pilot and rotated crew members every two hours. He said the overlap meant an incoming pilot spent two hours in the cockpit with the outgoing pilot.
The first Toulouse-to-Melbourne leg carried four Airbus pilots and five flight-test engineers. On the Melbourne-to-Toulouse flight, two Qantas pilots joined three Airbus pilots and five flight-test engineers, according to Airbus. Pepin said the Qantas pilots, already qualified on the A350, were given scheduled time at the controls to experience the -1000ULR variant.
The test also became a spectator event. Flightradar24 said more than 3.6 million people tracked the aircraft on its Melbourne-to-Toulouse return, making it the service’s second-most-tracked flight after the 2022 Royal Air Force flight carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin.
What record could Qantas break?
Singapore Airlines currently operates the longest regular nonstop commercial flights, linking New York City and Singapore. Guinness World Records lists that service as the longest-duration nonstop scheduled flight, and it typically takes 18 to 19 hours using the Airbus A350-900ULR.
Qantas’ Project Sunrise flights would push beyond that if they enter service as planned. Ticket prices have not been announced. Qantas says more than 40 percent of seats will be in First, Business and Premium Economy, a layout aimed at making very long flights work with fewer total passengers than a denser A350 cabin.
This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.
