Planes used for world’s longest nonstop commercial flights are getting a makeover

Travelers booking seats on what’s currently the world’s longest nonstop commercial flight will have more luxurious options to choose from in the not-so-distant future. Singapore Airlines (SIA) — voted the world’s second-best airline in 2024 by Skytrax —recently revealed a multi-year 1.1b Singapore dollars (around $821m) program to install new long-haul cabin products in its 41 Airbus A350-900 aircraft. And as part of that retrofit, the airline is adding first-class seats to its seven A350-900ULR planes, which currently only have business class and premium economy cabins. Details of the cabin retrofits are few, with the airline only releasing a couple of images. What we do know is each of the seven A350-900ULR planes will feature four first-class seats, 70 business-class seats and 58 premium economy seats. ULR stands for Ultra Long Range, and the name says it all. The Singapore carrier uses these seven planes for flights to and from the United States. That includes the world’s longest nonstop commercial flight, between Singapore Changi Airport and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, which takes between 18 to 19 hours on average and covers more than 9,500 miles. “Designed with increasingly discerning travelers in mind, these plush first-class seats promise to deliver an unparalleled in-flight experience,” said the airline in a statement. Meanwhile, the airline’s 34 A350-900 long-haul aircraft will have 42 business-class seats, 24 premium economy seats and 192 economy seats. The first retrofitted A350-900 long-haul aircraft is expected to enter service in the second quarter of 2026, while the first A350-900ULR variant will follow in the first quarter of 2027. The airline says the new seat designs will also feature in its upcoming Boeing 777-9 aircraft.<br/>