18 hours nonstop across the Pacific: Qantas to fly Sydney to New York in 2028

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents 18 hours nonstop across the Pacific: Qantas to fly Sydney to New York in 2028.

You sit 18 hours in a plane, without the engine noise stopping in between – once across the Pacific, about 16,000 kilometers straight. That's exactly the flight the Australian airline Qantas wants to put into regular scheduled service from 2028: nonstop from Sydney to New York.

For frequent flyers, this sounds less like adventure and more like logistics – because such a nonstop route is no easy feat physically. According to information known so far, Qantas wants to use specially converted Airbus aircraft with XXL tanks. The goal: more range, no stopover, a direct connection between two of the world's largest economic areas.

What's behind the project, what the XXL tanks bring, and what it could mean for travelers between Europe, Australia and the US – we summarize the facts known so far.

What exactly is Qantas planning?

The Sydney–New York nonstop route with a pure flight time of about 18 hours and around 16,000 kilometers in distance. This is reported by Stern Panorama with reference to the airline's announcement. ZEIT also picks up on the project with an identical headline. Both sources agree: The planned launch date is the year 2028.

18 hours, 16,000 kilometers, no pause: With specially converted Airbus aircraft and XXL tanks, Qantas wants to fly nonstop from Sydney to New York soon.

XXL tanks and converted Airbus aircraft

A nonstop range of 16,000 kilometers is a tall order even for modern long-haul jets. So that the Airbus can handle the distance without refueling stops, Qantas plans enlarged tanks according to Stern – hence the working title "XXL tanks". Additionally, the aircraft are specially converted for ultra-long-haul operations according to the report.

What does the XXL flight mean for you?

Even if you never sit in this plane yourself, such an announcement changes the travel market. If some passengers fly directly in the future instead of with a stopover, this shortens travel times – and may put pressure on prices for comparable routes via Asia or the Middle East.

It remains open which aircraft model will actually be used, how much an economy ticket will cost, and whether the flight route will really start in 2028 without further delays. Qantas itself has not commented in detail so far.

Added value for you

If you're interested in ultra-long-haul flights and the future of aviation, you'll find more background at TVS on aircraft technology, travel trends, and the question of how global air traffic will change by 2030.