Qantas’s second Project Sunrise route will take off in 2028, the carrier confirmed.
Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson revealed the airline will fly non-stop to New York City from Sydney Kingsford Smith in two years’ time. This will be the second route operated by the ultra-long-haul A350–1000ULR, with Sydney-London expected to debut in 2027.
Nicknamed ‘Project Sunrise’, the launch of the A350 has been postponed multiple times, first by the Covid-19 pandemic and then by delays with manufacturers Airbus. The ambitious scheme will shave off critical hours on the long journey to Australia, as no layovers are required.
Qantas’s current Sydney-New York route takes 21 hours and includes a stop in Los Angeles. However, the A350 can fly for 22 hours without stopping, potentially revolutionising the long-haul network. A recent test flight from Airbus saw the aircraft travel more than 24 hours from Melbourne to the manufacturer’s HQ in Toulouse, France.
At the route launch party in New York, Hudson said:
Reaching New York nonstop completes a vision we set out many years ago, and it’s a moment of enormous pride for the thousands of our people who have been working hard to make Project Sunrise a reality.
She told the Financial Times that the airline expects the new ultra-long-haul destinations to increase earnings by A$400 million in the next five years. She added that Project Sunrise remained viable despite the surge in fuel prices since conflict broke out in the Middle East in March, pointing out that despite these challenges the non-stop Perth-London route is still the ‘highest-performing route on [Qantas’s] network’.
The A350 interiors have been configured with an emphasis on premium seating, featuring only 140 economy seats. A wellness area will help passengers manage the lengthy flight time, while 40 premium economy, 52 business class, and six first-class passengers will travel up to 22 hours in greater comfort.
Join us at World Aviation Festival 2026.
For more like this, see:
