The world’s longest long-haul flights

Qantas has asked for planes that can fly even further –from Sydney to London or New York

LONG-HAUL flights halfway across the globe are making a comeback, even with oil prices close to their highest in four years. About six months after Qantas Airways started a direct service from Perth to London, Singapore Airlines is bringing back its 10,400-mile jump to New York on October 11, pipping Qatar Airways’ Doha-Auckland route to reclaim the title of the world’s longest commercial flight.

Advances in technology and the advent of aircraft that guzzle less and carry more fuel are helping make the Singapore route viable again, five years after $100-a-barrel oil contributed to the demise of the flight, which will take as long as 18 hours and 45 minutes.

Last month, Singapore Airlines took delivery of the first of seven A350-900 Ultra Long Range aircraft that it will use on the route as well as for nonstop services to Los Angeles starting in November. Qantas has asked Boeing and Airbus to design planes that can fly even further – from Sydney to London or New York.

For those wincing at the idea of being cooped up for almost 19 hours in a 220-foot tube at 35,000 feet, here’s what to expect on the flight from Changi Airport to Newark Liberty International:

Forget cattle class. The Airbus jet that will ply the route carries a maximum of 161 passengers, compared with 253 on the airline’s existing A350900s. That means more space, with 67 flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration for business class and 94 premium economy places in a mostly 2-4-2 arrangement at the rear.

While the premium-economy seats offer an eight-inch recline, the pitch – the distance between yours and the one in front – is a standard 38 inches, four inches less than on some of Japan Airlines’ long-haul flights.

Singapore Airlines says it will serve dishes on super-long routes that try to offset the effect of being stuck in a seat for a day.

When it scrapped the previous Singapore-New York flight in 2013, oil was trading around $100 a barrel. With crude prices above $80 again, the carrier is relying more on technology to mitigate the fuel bill.

That means keeping the plane as light as possible. Lightweight composites including carbon fibre make up the bulk of the A350-900ULR, while new wingtips help reduce drag, Airbus says.

The revamped model consumes 25pc less fuel than aircraft of a similar size and performance, according to Maria Luisa Lucas Ugena, Airbus’s head of A350 product marketing.

The plane has a higher ceiling, bigger windows and a wider body, with less noise in the cabin and LED lighting that is designed to reduce jet lag.

Composite-based planes can also tolerate higher cabin pressure, which means more oxygen and moisture in the air, making for a more comfortable flight.

Angus Whitley and Kyunghee Park (Bloomberg)