Qantas to test London-Sydney non-stop

Qantas will operate its second of 3 ultra-long-haul test flights under Project Sunrise, this time from London to Sydney, a month after it completed its first research flight from New York to Sydney. The latest flight took off at 06:00 Thursday, and will last about 19.5 hours, slightly longer than the New York-Sydney nonstop which flew in October. Like the earlier flight, the aircraft will carry about 50 passengers and crew, and no cargo, in order to give it the necessary range. The Boeing 787-9 that will operate the flight – a new aircraft to be delivered to the airline – will fly 17,800km. This is about 1,500km further than New York-Sydney. Qantas’ second research flight is the second such flight to operate London-Sydney nonstop. Thirty years ago, Qantas flew a 747-400 ferry flight on the same route. <br/>