First aircraft for direct Sydney-London route exits Toulouse factory
Sydney-Paris has been identified as a future opportunity for a direct Qantas route
The direct London-Sydney flight will take around 22 hours
FiledIMAGE/Shutterstock/Qantas Facebook page
The first of 12 planes set to be used for non-stop flights between London and Sydney has been constructed by Airbus at its factory in Toulouse and is now being tested.
It is part of ambitious plans by Australian flag carrier Qantas to link Australia’s eastern coast to major destinations with non-stop flights, under the ‘Project Sunrise’ moniker.
Depending on testing the first plane is set to be delivered to Australia by the end of 2026, with the London-Sydney route beginning soon after. It will be the first direct commercial flight between Sydney and London in history, as well as the longest non-stop one.
The modified Airbus A350 has been meticulously crafted to cut down on unnecessary elements to increase fuel capacity. It will be able to fly more than 18,000km without stopping.
This is possible via the inclusion of an extra fuel tank, carrying 20,000 more litres of kerosene.
In turn, the plane’s seating capacity has been reduced, and it will carry 238 passengers instead of the 350 that a typical Airbus A350 can handle.
More than 40% of the seats will be in first or business class, pointing to a luxury experience – economy tickets will be naturally more expensive than stopover flights, due to the lower capacity and cost of running the flight.
Other additions include a ‘well-being space’ for passengers to stretch their limbs, eat healthy snacks and relax during the 22-hour flight, special lighting to mimic circadian-rhythm and minimise jet lag, and free WiFi.
Direct links to Paris under review
Project Sunrise will use the 12-aircraft fleet to provide direct connections between Sydney and London, as well as Sydney and New York.
Based on the scheme’s success, however, a direct Sydney-Paris route may follow.
The carrier already offers routes to Paris from eastern Australia (via stopovers and aircraft/ticket sharing agreements with partners in the OneWorld group), flying into Charles de Gaulle airport.
Qantas also operates a direct flight between Paris and Perth, which takes 17 hours and uses a Boeing 787.
Paris is a likely candidate for the scheme to expand to in the EU, due to its status as a major tourist destination, business hub, and transportation links to other countries, as well as the airline’s presence in the capital. Qantas says the journey would be reduced by up to four hours with a direct flight as opposed to a stopover.
During initial announcements of Project Sunrise in 2017, Qantas stated it had identified new direct flight opportunities with routes from Australia’s east coast to several cities including London, New York, Paris, Cape Town, and Rio de Janeiro, before focusing on the former two cities.
Any such expansion will take years, however, as Qantas would need to order additional modified aircraft from Airbus.
