After 5 years without providing service, in October 2018 the longest flight in the world came back into operation. Operated by Singapore Airlines, it links the New York airport of Newark with that of Changi, in Singapore.
It came into operation in February 2004 and covered a distance of 15,345 km, obviously non-stop. But in November 2013 it stopped providing service, which led it to be dethroned as the longest line in the world.
At that time, the increase in oil prices and the fact that the aircraft that covered the route (Airbus A340-500) were not efficient enough led to the cancellation of the tour. These planes had four engines with only 100 business class seats. All this made the flight not competitive for Singapore Airlines.
The flight is currently operated by an Airbus A350-900 ULR. The Singapore Airlines flight departing from Newark, makes its journey in approximately 19 hours and runs the route daily. For its part, the return from Singapore to Newark is the second longest flight in the world, with fifteen minutes less duration.
Two routes, same flight
Flights from Newark to Singapore travel through the UK and follow the same route to Singapore as other flights from Europe, while those from Singapore to Newark travel via Japan, Alaska and Canada.
However, this is not the shortest path between the two points. The shortest path between Newark and Singapore is a north-south route that would pass over Canada’s Baffin Island, the North Pole, Siberia, and China, as can be seen on the map above.
The actual flight paths deviated from the ideal route through the North Pole due to jet streams.
Security issues also had an influence, such as the existence of a greater number of alternative airports, as well as the constant changes in transatlantic routes.
Thus, the shortest distance between Newark and Singapore via the North Pole is 15,345 km. From Newark to Singapore via London, 16,464 km and from Singapore to Newark via Tokyo, 16,184 km.
The next longest flights in the world
The next longest flight in the world is the one between Doha (Qatar) and Auckland, the main city of New Zealand. It is a non-stop flight of more than 14,500 kilometers of the Qatar Airways company that came into operation in February 2017. Until the return to operation of the Singapore Airlines flight, it was for a few months the longest flight in the world.
The next longest flight in the world is the one that runs between Perth and London Heathrow airport. It covers a distance of 14,499 km and came into operation in March 2018.
The fourth longest route in the world also comes from the antipodes: it links Auckland and Dubai, a distance of 14,200 kilometers. For its part, the fifth is a Singapore Airlines between Singapore and Los Angeles, which travels 14,113 km.
The longest flight in a commercial airplane without stops
Singapore Airlines is the longest non-stop flight on a regular line, but not the longest non-stop commercial aircraft ever made.
That record is held by a Boeing 777-200LR, with the Hong Kong-London itinerary (21,602 km). The route followed was through the west, crossing the United States and the Pacific and not through the east, whose distance is considerably shorter (9,647 km).
The flight lasted 22 hours 22 minutes. Although the plane had 301 seats, only 27 passengers and eight pilots traveled.
Among the travelers were executives and engineers from Boeing and General Electric, as well as a dozen journalists from different parts of the planet.
