Airline prepares to make world’s longest commercial flight: 19 hours – CNET

The first Airbus A350-900ULR arrived in Singapore over the weekend as Singapore Airlines prepares to launch the world’s longest flights.

Journeys between Singapore and New York will begin on Oct. 11, the airline said in a release, covering a distance of around 9,000 nautical miles (10,400 miles or 16,700 km) in about 18 hours and 45 minutes.

It’ll take the title of the world’s longest commercial flight from Qatar Airways. The current title holder is a 18-hour nonstop journey between Doha, Qatar, and Auckland, New Zealand.

The route will have a two-class layout, with 67 business-class seats and 94 premium economy-class seats.

The A350-900ULR (for Ultra Long Range) completed its first flight in April, and can fly 20 hours nonstop with a full load of passengers.

The airline will run three flights in the first week, increasing to daily from Oct. 18, Bloomberg reported. It’ll use subsequent deliveries of the A350-900ULR for non-stop services to Los Angeles from Nov. 2.

“This is a proud moment for both Singapore Airlines and Airbus, not only because we have again strengthened our partnership, but also because we have pushed the limits with this highly advanced new aircraft to extend long-range flying to new lengths,” said Goh Choon Phong, Singapore Airlines’ CEO.

A windowless airplane? It’s not as crazy as you think.

Supersonic without the boom: Building a plane with a quieter sonic boom.