Every field of human activity has its own achievements and records, and civil aviation is no exception. We will analyze which airline has the longest flight on an airplane and on which route, and also look at some interesting points regarding this phenomenon.

Singapore Airlines plane

The longest flight on an airplane is offered by the airline Singapore Airlines, in order to get there to Singapore from New York. Passengers need to travel approximately 15500 kilometers on an Airbus A340 airliner. Travel time will be about 19-19.5 hours, passengers are offered comfortable and convenient seats in business class cabins. It is in such conditions that travelers will be able to rest normally, staying in the sky for such a long time, because the airliner does not land at any airfield and does not refuel throughout the entire journey.

What can affect travel time?

It is very difficult to determine the exact flight time, because the duration is influenced by several factors:

• Direction of the wind;
• weather conditions in the region;
• precipitation intensity, etc.

If the weather conditions are favorable and the wind is headwind, then the longest flight by plane will last no more than 19 hours.

It is worth noting that the flight from Singapore to New York is, of course, the longest, but the return route, that is, from New York to Singapore, is even longer by about 15-20 minutes. Therefore, it is more accurate to say that the longest flight in the world is carried out by the same carrier company, but only in the opposite direction, that is, from New York to Singapore.

Briefly about the airliner

There are only 100 seats on board the airliner; as mentioned earlier, there is no economy class, so tickets are sold only to the business class cabin.

The tank is designed to hold 220,000 liters of kerosene, but since the airliner does not land at the airfield for refueling, there is an additional tank with fuel in the luggage compartment. After analysis, we can come to the conclusion that fuel consumption is quite high: approximately 2000 liters for each passenger, so the Singaporean authorities decided to cancel the flight in this direction.

Business class on Singapore Airlines

Longest flights in the world

In addition to the longest flight in the world, which was canceled relatively recently, there are several other long flights operated by different air carriers around the world:

1. Emirates airline, flying from Dubai to Panama, was able to stay in airspace 17 hours 40 minutes, that is, it made the longest flight on an airplane without additional landing and refueling.
2. The flight from Johannesburg to Atlanta with Delta airlines lasts approximately 17-17.5 hours.
3. Air carrier Qantas Airlines, flying from Dallas to Sydney, is in the airspace for approximately 16-16.5 hours. This flight should also be considered the longest flight on an airplane.
4. The longest flight in Europe is the route from the capital of France to Santiago de Chile. Passengers travel for about 14.5-15 hours, depending on the weather conditions of the region and headwind gusts, and this flight is operated by the carrier AirFrance.

It is also worth noting the equally long flight from Madrid to Santiago operated by Iberia, lasting 14 hours 55 minutes, and the flight in the same direction from Paris lasting 13 hours 45 minutes.

For travelers to Italy, the longest non-stop plane flight is offered by Alitalia on the route from the Italian capital to Buenos Aires. Travel time is approximately 14-14.5 hours; the duration of the journey, as mentioned earlier, depends on the flow of headwinds and weather conditions. A flight on the same route from Frankfurt with Lufthansa takes just 7-10 minutes less. And by purchasing boarding passes to the capital of Argentina on planes of the British carrier British Airways, passengers will be able to cover a considerable distance of almost 12,000 km in about 13.5-14 hours.

The longest flight in the world, which does not involve transfers, is carried out along the “Great Arc” route. It is this one that is the shortest, if you do not take into account sine and cosine.

Examples of the most long routes in the world

Longest domestic flights

Not only international flights can be long, passengers often require tickets for domestic flights, the travel time of which is also long. Longest domestic flight by plane:

• 9400 km from the central airport of France to Reunion;
• Passengers from New York to Hawaii need to travel 8,000 km;
• The domestic flight from Sochi to Khabarovsk lasts 6900 km;
• 6800 km for passengers from the capital of Russia to Kamchatka.

It is worth noting that it is French air carriers that carry out the longest airplane flights in the world, if we consider domestic types of flights.

What can passengers do during a long flight?

If you have a long flight ahead, you should think about how to pass the time on the way. Experts advise doing the following:

• book tickets only for daytime flights if passengers cannot sleep on board the airliner;
• book seats in advance to be able to choose exactly the seat that is most suitable for the traveler. You can reserve a seat through online check-in, which begins one day before the airliner takes off. Having in hand boarding pass, in a place convenient for them, passengers will not have to be crowded in uncomfortable conditions, causing themselves a lot of inconvenience;
• on the road you need to take with you all the items that you may need long journey, so this point needs to be carefully thought through and analyzed. You should definitely have warm clothes on hand that you can conveniently take off or put on if the temperature in the cabin changes suddenly. No less popular are headphones or earplugs, which will help passengers sleep peacefully.

What other things you need to take with you that may be needed at any time must be decided by the passenger himself, taking into account his preferences and his own state of health.

For many, air travel has long become an integral part of life. Some people use them so often that for these people it is a simple part of their daily routine. And yet they remain difficult and tiring for those who fly a lot by plane.

This is why some people prefer to fly exclusively non-stop flights. It's both faster and more convenient. That's why airlines never stop offering long-haul flights. non-stop flights. The longest flights in the world are often in good demand among passengers.

By it is meant commercial flight, during which no intermediate transfers are planned. It must meet the following criteria:

• the total distance between the point of arrival and departure must be at least 12,000 km;
• entire flight time - from 15 hours.

Basically, such long-distance routes are laid in a great circle And over the polar regions, since this is the shortest distance between two points on Earth.

Map of direct flights in the world.

In total, almost all of the world's longest non-stop plane flights take place from South-East Asia to cities in North America.

Advantages and disadvantages of nonstop flights

The advantage of this flight is that You won’t have to wait in line to check in at your transfer airport. You sit down calmly at the starting point of the route and spend the entire flight in your seat.

The disadvantages are that, as a rule, passengers simply don’t know what to do with themselves during the flight. Spending 15 hours or more in a chair is very difficult.

Therefore, on such routes they try to provide various entertainment for passengers as much as possible.

To prevent your legs from becoming numb, be sure to get up and walk along the aisle to stretch your legs a little.

Longest flights by plane

Below are 10 longest routes offered by different airlines.

The first place here comes flight between Doha in Qatar and Auckland, operated by Qatar Airways. The total distance covered is 14,535 km.

Passengers on this flight spend time in the air about 17 hours 40 minutes. The flight takes place by plane Boeing 777-200LR. The first flight was carried out February 6, 2017.

Boeing 777-200LR.

Second place belongs to Emirates flight on an Airbus A380-800. This flight is Auckland total length at 14,202 km. It will take time 17 hours 15 minutes. This is the first time a plane has taken such a route. in March 2016.

Flight Sydney - Dallas, offered by the national carrier Qantas Airways, is in third place. Travel time - 15 hours 35 minutes, and the covered distance is 13,804 km.

Airbus A380-800.

The flight takes place on the same Airbus. By the way, it's two stories high, so you can stretch your legs during the flight by walking to the self-service bar. For the first time, the flight was carried out September 29, 2014.

The fourth place is taken flight Singapore - San Francisco. This is Singapore Airlines, which operates such a route at a distance of at 13,588 km. On the Airbus A350-900 aircraft you will have to carry out about 16 and a half hours.

Airbus A350-900.

Comes to fifth place flight Johannesburg - Atlanta Delta Air Lines, on a Boeing 777-200LR. The plane covers the route at 13,582 km. It comes out in time 16 hours 15 minutes. The first flight has already passed June 2, 2009.

On the sixth - flight Dubai - Los Angeles, which Emirates has, on the same Boeing. The distance he travels is 13,420 km. On board the aircraft you will have to spend 16 hours 35 minutes. October 26, 2008— start date of flights on this route.

The seventh longest was flight from Los Angeles to Bangkok. Thai Airways International offers this route. Distance at 13,309 km Airbus A340-500 aircraft passes in 17 and a half hours. It began to be implemented December 2, 2005.

Airbus A340-500.

Eighth place was again taken by Emirates with their flight Dubai - Houston. On the Boeing 777-200LR passengers travel 13,144 km in 16 hours 20 minutes. For the first time, he passed December 3, 2007.

The ninth place is rightfully occupied flight Washington - Johannesburg, from South African Airways. The route will be 13,084 km, and in time - 15 hours 10 minutes. Airbus A340-300 takes off for the first time May 1, 2009 to go on this flight.

On the same day it was held for the first time flight Dubai - San Francisco Emirates company. Boeing 777-200LR completed the route 13,041 km in 16 hours. He's at the bottom of our list.

As you can see, the most long flights on an airplane in the world are offered by commercial professionals civil aviation, which means you don’t need to worry about your comfort during such flights.

From October 11, Singapore Airlines will open regular flights on the route Singapore - New York. This will be the longest commercial line in the world on this moment. Flights will be operated Airbus aircraft, and the journey will take almost 19 hours. “360” learned from the pilots how safe such a long flight is.

Asian carrier Singapore Airlines is launching direct flights from Singapore to New York starting today. They will be carried out by Airbus A350 aircraft of the updated Ultra Long Range modification. One such airliner is capable of carrying 161 passengers, including 67 business class seats. In addition to them, there will be an expanded crew on board: two pilots and 13 stewards.

It will be the longest non-stop commercial flight in the world - its length will be 16,700 kilometers, which is slightly less than half the equator. In this case, passengers will remain in the air for 18 hours and 50 minutes.

According to the airline, the plane is equipped with all the amenities for a comfortable long flight. The cabin features high ceilings, sophisticated LED lighting, nearly vertical side walls and low level noise. A video library of over a thousand films is also available.

The price of the air ticket, in addition to three meals a day, includes a free Internet package of 30 megabytes. Those who need more traffic can increase it for $28 (1,855 rubles).

“Singapore Airlines always prides itself on breaking boundaries to provide the best travel experience for our customers. We are pleased to maintain our leadership with new direct flights using the latest technologies,” said the head of the airline, Gou Chun Fong, during the presentation of the new flight route.

According to the former commander of the aircraft, Alexander Romanov, flights from Singapore Airlines will meet all safety standards.

“Airbuses are considered reliable cars, and if they are reinforced with additional tanks, they can easily fly for 18 hours or more without refueling,” noted the 360 ​​interlocutor.

At the same time, such flights will be in demand among demanding customers. “Practice shows that it is much easier for passengers to endure long periods of time in the air than to make transfers, so the new direction has every chance of success,” Romanov noted.

Aviation expert Evgeny Sologubov also agrees with the ex-pilot. In his opinion, Airbus is an absolutely safe aircraft. “The Airbus A350 is currently the most modern twin-engine airliner in the world. It operates flights under ETOPS rules, which allow long-range flights with two engines. In particular, it has a built-in minute system emergency landing“, which allows you to carry out piloting as safely as possible,” noted the interlocutor of “360”.

At the same time, direct flights to New York will bring economic benefits to Singapore Airlines. “People fly from New York to Singapore quite a lot, at least as I see from work in Moscow. They often fly from New York to Moscow and then board a flight to Singapore. Therefore, non-stop flights will be in demand,” Evgeniy Sologubov is sure.

Almost a day in the air

Photo source: Pixabay

Currently, the longest flight in the world is Qatar Airways' flight between Doha and Auckland, New Zealand. The passenger flies non-stop for about 16 and a half hours and during this time covers more than 14.5 thousand kilometers.

The flight is carried out by a wide-body passenger airliner Boeing 777−200LR, specially designed for long-haul flights. The world's largest twin-engine turbofan passenger aircraft is powered by the most powerful General Electric GE90 jet engines in aviation history.

No less long commercial flights have been launched since 2016 by the eternal competitor of the Qataris - Dubai Emirates airline. The carrier has launched a non-stop flight on the Dubai - Auckland route, which lasts 16 hours per week. east direction and 17 hours 15 minutes - in the west.

However, formally the leader in long-distance non-stop flights can be considered the flight from Hong Kong to London, first performed on a Boeing 777-200 aircraft in 2005. The flight length was then 21,602 kilometers, and the travel time was 22 hours 40 minutes. Since the flight was made only once, it was not included in the rating of the longest flights.

Hooray. My old dream came true - to ride on the Singapore - New York flight. This is the longest flight in the world, and, probably, in general in the history of civil commercial transportation. It flies for 18-19 hours (depending on the wind at the flight level), without landings at all, at one gas station, 16 thousand kilometers from point to point.

// Or rather, the longest one is its “sibling”, i.e. The return flight from New York to Singapore is 15 minutes longer, the wind blows like that up there :)

“De jure” the flight to New York is only 5 and a half hours: the plane departs at 12:30 in the afternoon and arrives at 18:00 in the evening of the same day. Yep, you guessed it right - departure is on Singapore time, and arrival is on Eastern American time. But it still sounds more optimistic than “eighteen hours in an iron can... with Singaporean flight attendants” :)

Well, on such an optimistic note, you can load yourself into this flying unit. This route is operated by specially adapted Airbus A340-500s. It takes only 100 passengers, there is no economy - all seats are business class only.

Well, here we go......

13:02 - acceleration.
13:03 - we are flying.

The plane accelerates and takes off slowly, heavily, and slowly. “A barrel with kerosene, a tail and wings,” I thought. This is true. According to Wikipedia, 220 thousand liters of kerosene are poured into this barrel. Probably half of the luggage compartment is a huge additional fuel tank.

220 thousand liters for 100 travelers plus crew - that’s almost 2 thousand liters for each snout!! Oh, it’s a little embarrassing to fly on this board, which spits out irreplaceable Natural resources... Well, what should we do? We need to fly...

It was precisely because of suboptimal fuel consumption and rising oil prices that Singaporeans decided to cancel this flight - the company stops flying on this route on November 23 of this year (2013), i.e. in about a week! Read more “Why the longest flights are saying So Long” in Bloomberg Businessweek on paper or.

We were lucky - in a few days this flight will be canceled forever, and we... And we! We made it to the very end of this fantastic air marathon. “Caught by the tail,” said my random travel companion T.T. (That’s him in the photo at the airport just above).

13:30 - we are still gaining altitude, we fly for half an hour - but we have only climbed 7 thousand. meters.
(here, above and further I indicate the time at the departure point).

Singapore and the northeastern United States are almost opposite each other in longitude, so it seems the same as flying - to the right of the North Pole through Japan-Kamchatka-Alaska or to the left of it, through Siberia, Scandinavia and Greenland. Or rather, on the contrary - in reverse order. NYC - Greenland - Northern Europe - rushed to the southeast...

By the way, Singapore Lines seem to be the only airline that covers the whole world in a circle. From them there are flights west to Houston (Singapore-Moscow-Houston) and east to New York. Oh how! The Malaysians also seem to be trying to catch up with them - I once saw a Malaysian board in Buenos Aires(!!)

14:05 - we’ve been flying for an hour, towards Japan and Kamchatka (hurray!). Another 17 hours to fly...

What to do all this time?? - any normal person (a normally flying person... or rather, a normally non-flying person) will be horrified. The first thing is to get into the mail and process all the letters that have fallen on me over the past few days (“on the ground” I don’t have enough time to do this, I’m clearing out debris on airplanes). And then - bummer! The battery was low, and the sockets in my chair and the one next to me turned out to be non-functional! Figase Singapore Airlines, famous for their quality of service to passengers... I had to run to recharge at the tail of the plane, where there was a free seat with a working socket (I was somehow too lazy to change seats from my already heated seat) :)

15:10 - fed something tasty from Southeast Asia...

15:50 - we fly over Manila.

16:15 - the second battery in the laptop died (the first one was immediately half empty, that’s why it happened so quickly). I watched some Hollywood garbage with a stupid plot, idiotic texts, directorial mistakes, etc. I thought, if this is being filmed, does that mean some unfortunate people are watching it? On such a sad note, I started watching (and in some places just skipping) the second Hollywood drama :)

18:55 — we fly over Tokyo.

And then transfer to another flight, towards the American outback... Until the next reports, everyone!

In early February, Qatar Airways flew the world's longest commercial flight from Doha (Qatar) to Auckland ( New Zealand). Especially for readers, experts from the travel service OneTwoTrip revealed the details of the flight and talked about the longest existing air routes.

Doha - Auckland, 14.5 thousand kilometers

Who performs: Qatar Airways
Flight number: QR 920, launched February 2017
Flight time: 16 hours 23 minutes (return flight - more than 18 hours)
Aircraft: Boeing 777

The latest “longest flight” launched takes passengers nearly 16 and a half hours. During this time, the airliner flies 14,535 kilometers.

The Boeing 777 cabin has 217 economy class seats and 42 business class seats. Departure from Doha airport at 5:10 local time.

The crew includes 4 pilots and 15 flight attendants. During the flight, passengers drink more than a thousand servings of tea and coffee, two thousand servings of soft drinks and eat a thousand servings of in-flight meals.

Due to headwinds, the return flight lasts almost two hours longer: passengers spend more than 18 hours in the air.

Dubai - Auckland, 14.2 thousand kilometers

Who operates: Flight number: EK 449, launched March 2016
Flight time: 17 hours 25 minutes
Aircraft: Airbus A380

More than 17 hours of flight is not an easy test for passengers, but such a flight helps save an average of three hours of travel time. In addition, passengers fly in comfort: the Airbus A380 is designed specifically for ultra-long-distance flights.

From Dubai to Auckland, the flight departs at 10:05 am and arrives in Auckland at 11:00 am the next day local time. If you want to get to Auckland from Moscow, flight EK 448 has a convenient connection in Dubai lasting three to four hours, so the entire journey to New Zealand will take an average of 25 hours. True, this pleasure is not cheap: in February 2017, a ticket for a flight Moscow - Auckland with a transfer in Dubai costs just under 100 thousand rubles. The minimum price for the same route is 71 thousand rubles, but you will have to spend seven hours more on the road.

Dallas - Sydney, 13.8 thousand kilometers

Who performs: Qantas
Flight number: QF 8, launched September 2014
Flight time: 16 hours 55 minutes (16 hours 50 minutes according to winter schedule)
Aircraft: Airbus A380-800

This is the only non-stop flight between Australia and east coast USA. Planes fly six times a week: every day except Tuesday. There are four classes of seating on board: 14 private cabins in first class, 64 seats in business class, 35 seats in premium economy class and 371 seats in economy class.

The first A380 that operated this flight had a special livery: a kangaroo (the airline's traditional symbol) on the tail of the plane was depicted with a cowboy hat and a stars-and-stripes bandana around its neck. Today, this aircraft has unfortunately been replaced by an aircraft in the standard Qantas livery.

San Francisco - Singapore, 13.6 thousand kilometers

Who operates: United Airlines, Singapore Airlines
Flight number: UA I, launched June 2016 / SQ 31, launched October 2016
Flight time: 16 hours 30 minutes (17 hours 15 minutes according to winter schedule)
Aircraft: Boeing 787-9 / Airbus A350-900

Passengers flying from San Francisco to Singapore are involved in an interesting game of time due to time zones. On the way from the USA to Asia, they unnoticed by themselves lose almost two days: they fly out at 22:55 from the USA, and land at Changi Airport at 6:15 am local time, but two hours later. But the return journey on flight UA II takes only 30 minutes by the hour: departure from Singapore at 8:45 and landing in the States at 9:15 (and, of course, 16 hours in flight).

Photo: Stephen Brashear/Getty Images

Johannesburg - Atlanta, 13.6 thousand kilometers

Who flies: Flight number: DL 201, launched June 2009
Flight time: 16 hours 50 minutes (16 hours 55 minutes according to winter schedule)
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200LR

The flight from Johannesburg to Atlanta is operated by four pilots and two separate teams of flight attendants, who rotate during the flight. For a 17-hour flight, the aircraft requires more than 150 thousand liters of fuel.

The airline released interesting statistics about this flight: during the year of flights, passengers on this flight drink about 70 thousand cans of soda, eat 100 thousand packages of crackers, 200 thousand bags of peanuts, and more than 225 thousand kilograms of ice are used for drinks.

Abu Dhabi - Los Angeles, 13.5 thousand kilometers

Who performs: Etihad Airways
Flight number: EY 171, launched June 2014
Flight time: 16 hours 30 minutes
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200LR

The Airbus A340-500, which accommodated 240 passengers (12 in first class, 28 in business and 200 in economy), first flew from the city of angels to the capital of the UAE, but in July 2014 Etihad replaced it with a Boeing 777-200LR. Now there are fewer seats in economy class - only 189, but the business class cabin has increased to 40 seats.