Scheduled non-stop flights from Sydney to London and New York was once a dream, but after years of planning, Australia's flag carrier - Qantas - and Airbus are set to make that dream come true. When the first flights take off in late 2025, the routes will be flown by a unique aircraft sporting brand new cabin products - crowned by new First Class Suites.
In 2017, Qantas challenged Airbus and Boeing to create an aircraft capable of flying non-stop for up to 21 hours. The longest scheduled flight - until now - has been the Singapore Airlines non-stop flight from Singapore to New York, taking up to 19 hours. Airbus rose to the challenge and designed the A350-1000ULR, essentially a larger version of the A350-900URL flying for Singapore Airlines. The ‘Ultra Long Range’ Airbus carries an extra fuel tank and features other design and engineering modifications which adds to the range. Flights are expected to take between 18 to 20 hours with some leeway required for extra flying time due to strong headwinds or unexpected delays or diversions.
Working under the title Project Sunrise, Qantas will fly non-stop from Sydney and Melbourne to London and New York, with more routes to follow. Other destinations that have been suggested include Paris, Frankfurt, Chicago, Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town, depending on commercial viability. On the Sydney to London flights, passengers can expect to save up to five hours compared to flying the current Qantas service - Sydney-Singapore-London - known as the ‘Kangaroo Route’.
Qantas has initially ordered twelve Airbus A350-1000ULR jets, with deliveries planned for the second half of 2025. The aircraft will feature just 238 seats across four classes, with all featuring new seat designs that Qantas says will "redefine" the travel experience. By comparison, British Airways has fitted 331 seats across three cabin classes on its A350-1000s and Etihad has 371 seats in two cabin classes. French Bee (an ultra low cost carrier) has squeezed an unbelievable 480 seats into two classes.
While Qantas will offer four cabin classes on the ultra long haul flights - Economy, Premium Economy, Business and First Class - Singapore Airlines opted to just focus on Premium Economy and Business Class. The logic behind Qantas offering all four cabin classes is that this makes the aircraft more flexible. If needed, the aircraft can rotate between ultra long haul flights and shorter flights to Asia or the US west coast.
While details of the new Business Class seats have yet to be revealed, Qantas has already released renderings of its new First Class Suites. Six private suites will be configured in a 1-1-1 layout over the first two rows, cocooning travellers in the lap of luxury.
The new Qantas First Class Suites will feature a separate seat and bed, a personal wardobe and a 32" HD video screen. They will feature closing doors - but not floor-to-ceiling like in the latest "gamechanger" First Class product from Emirates. The suites will also offer tailored lighting, temperature, and humidification - all in the name of wellbeing.
The concept of offering a separate bed next to an armchair is similar to the Singapore Airlines Suite on its A380s, although the latter offers a significantly larger footprint and allows two adjacent suites to be combined to create a double suite. Some may also remember that Lufthansa once offered a separate bed and seat on the upper deck of its Boeing 747-400s before they were reconfigured and now no longer offer First Class.
The new Qantas First Class Suites share one weakness with the new Emirates First Class Suites - they are not ideal when travelling with a partner. This is surprising considering that much of the First Class market is made up of premium leisure travellers, who often travel as couples.
The Qantas A350-1000ULRs will also introduce a new Business Class seat, which is expected to be based on the design currently offered by Qantas on its Boeing 787s, Airbus A330s and A380s, but with higher walls for added privacy. It remains to be seen if Qantas will follow the trend of adding sliding doors to the Business Class seats. Business Class is set to offer 52 seats split across two cabins - one offering 28 seats and one offering 24 seats.
Passengers flying in Premium Ecoonomy or Economy Class will also benefit from some added comfort compared to most other aircraft. Premium Economy will offer a 40” pitch, compared to 38" on the Airbus A380s and Boeing 787s. Economy Class will offer a 33" pitch, compared to 31-32" on the rest of the Qantas long haul fleet.
Qantas will offer passengers added space for stretching their legs, with Business Class featuring a Self Service Bar Zone. A Wellbeing Zone located between Premium Economy and Economy Class will be available to all passengers, alhough the exact purpose of this area remains somewhat vague.
BusinessClass.com will share more details of the Qantas A350-1000ULR when its new Business Class product is unveiled.
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