Qantas is set to shake up long-haul travel when it launches non-stop flights between Sydney and London in October 2027. The ambitious 'Project Sunrise' initiative will cut journey times by a staggering 97%, reducing the 5-day trek of the original 'Kangaroo Route' from 1947 to just under 22 hours.
The bespoke Airbus A350-1000ULR aircraft, designed for ultra-long-range flights, will connect Sydney with London over approximately 17,000km. Qantas has invested a reported £2.5 billion in these new planes, expecting Project Sunrise to generate annual earnings of around £300 million once the full fleet is operational.
The development of the A350-1000ULR has been a nine-year collaboration between Qantas and Airbus. The project faced significant challenges, including supply chain disruptions and delays in obtaining certification for seat engineering components. Post-pandemic labour shortages also impacted recruitment and training timelines at Airbus.
To achieve the record-breaking 22-hour flight duration, engineers had to rethink traditional aircraft design. The A350-1000ULR features an additional 20,000-litre fuel tank and a reduced passenger capacity of just 238 seats across four cabins: six first-class suites, 52 business suites, 40 premium economy, and 140 economy seats.
The first of the twelve A350-1000ULR aircraft is expected to be delivered to Qantas by April 2027, with five more arriving by November. Passengers will begin flying non-stop from Sydney to London in November 2027, with a second route connecting Sydney and New York also planned as part of Project Sunrise.