Qantas has confirmed when its long-awaited non-stop Sydney-London flights will take to the skies, with tickets for the historic service going on sale in February 2027.
The national carrier has also revealed that its QF1 and QF2 flight numbers will be assigned to the new ultra-long-haul services, marking a major milestone for the airline’s famous Kangaroo Route.
The flights will launch in October 2027 as part of Qantas’ ambitious Project Sunrise initiative, allowing passengers to travel between Australia and the UK without the traditional stopover in Singapore.
The new service will save travellers up to four hours compared with the existing one-stop journey, with the specially configured Airbus A350-1000ULR aircraft capable of flying more than 16,000 kilometres and remaining airborne for up to 22 hours.
The aircraft will feature an additional 20,000-litre fuel tank to provide the range needed to complete the marathon journey.
Qantas will take delivery of 12 A350-1000ULR aircraft, each configured with 238 seats across four cabins.
The first aircraft is expected to arrive in Australia in April 2027, with preparations already underway to train the hundreds of pilots and cabin crew required to operate the new services.
The introduction of the non-stop flights will also bring a significant change to the existing Sydney-London operation.
Qantas will retain its current service via Singapore for passengers who prefer to break up the journey, but the flights will operate under new numbers QF5 and QF6.
Meanwhile, the seasonal Perth-Rome services, which currently use those flight numbers, will become QF105 and QF106.
The Sydney-London route has a special place in Qantas history, with the original Kangaroo Route launching in 1947.
Back then, the journey took four days and involved seven stops, including Darwin, Singapore, Calcutta, Karachi, Cairo, Castel Benito and Rome.
Almost 80 years later, the airline is preparing to make aviation history by operating the world’s longest non-stop passenger flight.
The Sydney-London service is part of a broader international expansion under Project Sunrise, with Qantas also planning non-stop flights between Sydney and New York.
The New York service is expected to follow, with further details on its launch timing to be announced in 2027.
