This Just In: Qantas Is Launching the First-Ever Non-Stop Flights Between Sydney and New York in Mid-2028
Qantas has confirmed non-stop flights between Sydney and New York will launch from mid-2028 — the first ever non-stop commercial service between Australia and the Big Apple.
Flying from Sydney to New York has always meant stopping somewhere along the way, usually Los Angeles or Auckland — but from mid-2028, it won't. Qantas has confirmed it will launch non-stop flights between Sydney and New York, the first ever non-stop commercial service between Australia and the Big Apple.
The route was announced on Wednesday, September 23 as the second confirmed destination for Project Sunrise, the airline's long-running plan to fly non-stop from Australia's east coast to the world's biggest cities. It follows Sydney to London, which is set to take off in October 2027. Tickets for the inaugural Sydney–New York service are expected to go on sale from August 2027.
Qantas says the trip will take around 18 hours, cutting about three hours off the fastest current travel time. At the moment, the airline flies the route daily with a stop in Auckland. The flights will run on Airbus A350-1000ULR aircraft, specially configured with an extra 20,000-litre fuel tank that lets them fly more than 16,000 kilometres and up to 22 hours non-stop. Qantas will take delivery of 12 of them, each fitted with 238 seats across four cabins.
The first test aircraft is in the final stages of its flight test program. In July, it flew non-stop from Melbourne to Toulouse in 24 hours and 24 minutes, which Qantas says is a first for any commercial airliner. The marathon flight was tracked by 3.6 million people online. Qantas expects its first aircraft to be delivered in April 2027.
Spending 18 hours in a metal tube only works if passengers step off in decent shape, and Qantas has built the cabin around that problem. That includes a lighting program inspired by Australian landscapes designed to help fight jetlag.
"Flying these distances is only worth doing if our customers arrive feeling their best, and that belief has shaped everything we've built," said Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson. "Over the past decade, working alongside experts, we've designed the aircraft and the onboard experience around the science of ultra long-haul travel, from the lighting to the meals to a world-first Wellbeing Zone. This is a fundamentally different way to fly."
According to Qantas, demand for flights in and out of New York on the airline has nearly doubled since 2023, and visitor arrivals from the US are up five percent year-on-year. Appetite for non-stop, ultra long-haul flying is also climbing. Research commissioned by the airline found intent to book rose from 58 percent to 70 percent since February, reaching 80 percent among premium travellers.
Since 2018, nearly two million passengers have flown on Qantas' existing non-stop long-haul services, which include Perth to London, Rome and Paris, Melbourne to Dallas and Auckland to New York. The airline says those routes record the highest customer satisfaction scores on its international network.
"New York has always captured the imagination, and for generations, reaching it from Australia has meant breaking up the journey somewhere along the way," said Hudson. "From 2028, our customers will be able to board in Sydney and arrive in New York around 18 hours later without stopping once, cutting around three hours off the current fastest travel time. That changes what's possible for travel between our two countries."
It's a long way from Qantas' first trip to New York in 1958, which was part of its inaugural round-the-world service and went via Fiji, Honolulu and San Francisco. The airline also trialled non-stop research flights on the London and New York routes back in 2019, but the 2028 service will be the first to carry paying passengers.
To get ready, Qantas pilots have started training on Australia's first A350 simulator in Sydney. More than 360 pilots and 1,200 cabin crew will be trained to operate the Project Sunrise fleet by the time the 12th aircraft arrives.
Tickets for the inaugural Qantas Sydney–New York service are expected to go on sale from August 2027.
Images: Supplied
