The airline plans to launch the service in March 2018, joining the ranks of the world`s longest passenger flights.
"This is a game-changing route flown by a game-changing aircraft," Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement. "Australians have never had a direct link to Europe before, so the opportunities this opens up are huge."
Flying between Australia and the U.K. has long been a holy grail for Qantas, which has had to hop through Singapore and Dubai more recently to get to Europe on its "Kangaroo Route."
Joyce contrasted the new flight with Qantas` original Australia-to-London service that it introduced nearly 70 years ago. That one was a whole lot slower, taking four days and involving nine stops along the way.
Qantas said the Perth-London service -- at 9,009 miles (14,498 kilometers) -- is expected to be one of the longest passenger flights in the world when it goes live.
Until now, the flight was never economically feasible. The brutal winds going eastbound forced more fuel to be carried, while sacrificing valuable cargo or even leaving seats unfilled.
In commercial air travel, sometimes the shorter-duration flight actually covers more ground.
That`s true of the current record holder for distance. Air India`s service between New Delhi and San Francisco that flies over the Pacific rather than the more typical route over the North Pole. At 9,408 miles (15,140 kilometers), the Pacific path is a lot longer, but it actually saves fuel and time by taking advantage of the tailwinds provided by the high-altitude jet stream.
In February, there will be a new reigning champion for longest flight by duration when Qatar Airways flies from Auckland to Doha, scheduled for 17 hours and 45 minutes.
More about:
