The world's longest commercial flight is nearly here, and it hinges on a single piece of plumbing: a 20,000-litre fuel tank bolted into the tail of an Airbus A350-1000. Qantas' Project Sunrise aims to link Sydney with both London and New York nonstop by the end of 2028, and no aircraft on the market could do it as-is. Enter the A350-1000ULR — a one-customer variant that stretches range to nearly 10,000 nautical miles (18,500 km).
The extra fuel is the whole story. A standard A350-1000 holds about 156,000 litres; the ULR carries almost 180,000, thanks to a 'Rear Center Tank' built directly into the fuselage structure. That weight ripples through the entire aircraft: reinforced landing gear, reshaped wings with taller winglets, upgraded fuel-balancing software, and Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines — the most powerful ever fitted to an Airbus at 97,000 pounds of thrust each. Maximum takeoff weight climbs toward an estimated 340 tonnes, roughly a Boeing 747-100.
The test program has already produced a record. In July 2026, the first aircraft (test registration F-WZNK, rolled out in Toulouse that April) flew from Melbourne across the Pacific, North America and the Atlantic back to Toulouse — 12,460 nautical miles in 24 hours and 24 minutes, deliberately longer than the planned 21-22 hour scheduled missions. Certification is expected by early 2027, with commercial Sydney-London flights targeted for October that year.
So what does a day in the air actually look like? Because fuel displaces passengers, the ULR seats just 238 people — the lowest-density A350-1000 flying. Up front sit six first-class suites with a separate 22-inch armchair, an 80-inch lie-flat bed, sliding doors, a 32-inch entertainment screen, pajamas and a full duvet. Business gets 52 suites with their own privacy doors, then 40 premium economy seats in 2-4-2, and 140 economy seats at a generous 33-inch pitch. Everyone shares onboard wellness zones for stretching on the marathon hop.
Tickets for Sydney-London go on sale in February 2027; Sydney-New York follows in 2028 and will run alongside Qantas' existing one-stop service via Auckland. When launched, London-Sydney at 10,573 nautical miles will top Singapore Airlines' Singapore-New York route as the world's longest flight, with New York-Sydney a close second. Qantas will need at least four of the type to keep the London route running daily with a spare in the mix.
For travellers, this is the first realistic chance to fly between Australia's east coast and Europe or the US east coast without a connection — a two-plus-hour saving on through-times and none of the connection risk. The trade-off is a heavily premium-weighted cabin, so expect fares to skew high, especially for the six first suites. If you want one, mark that February 2027 sale date and move fast.
