Qantas Selects Airbus A350-1000 for World's Longest Flights

Qantas Airlines has officially ordered 12 Airbus A350-1000s for the launch of its planned ultra-long-haul operations dubbed Project Sunrise. The order was announced earlier today in Melbourne, Australia. The A350-1000 was selected by Qantas to operate the world's longest non-stop commercial flights, include flights between Sydney and Melbourne and destinations such as London and New York.

Featuring a premium layout, the A350 fleet will also be used by Qantas on other international services. The A350-1000 is powered by the latest generation Trent XWB engines from Rolls-Royce.

Also announced today were orders for 20 Airbus A220s as well as 20 Airbus A321XLRs. In the single aisle category the A220 and A321XLR were chosen under an evaluation called Project Winton.

The aircraft will be used by the Qantas Group on domestic services across the country, which can extend to over five hours. In addition, the A321XLR offers the range capability for flights from Australia to South East Asia, enabling the Qantas Group to open up new direct routes. The A220 and A321XLR fleets will both be powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines. Today’s orders are in addition to the existing order for 109 A320neo Family aircraft, which includes the A321XLR for the Qantas Group low-cost subsidiary Jetstar.

The A220, A321XLR and A350 are the market leaders in their respective size categories. In addition to offering the highest levels of passenger comfort, the aircraft bring a step change in efficiency, using up to 25% less fuel, a similar reduction in carbon emissions and a noise footprint 50% lower than previous generation aircraft. All in-production Airbus aircraft are certified to fly with a 50% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) blend, with a target to increase this to 100% by 2030.