QATAR: Qatar Airways Planning To Launch A Doha To Auckland Flight

Qatar Airways could be the next airline to nab the title of longest nonstop flight in the world. Currently, the longest flight is operated by Qantas, from Sydney to Dallas — that’s 8,578 miles. But Qatar Airways is planning to launch a Doha to Auckland flight that will go nearly 500 miles farther.

The 9,030-mile route is estimated to take 18.5 hours, compared to Qantas’s 16 hours and 55 minutes. But that’s not enough of a win — to cement its place at the top of the list, Qatar Airways will also take over the No. 2 spot by launching the second longest flight in the world too, from Doha to Santiago, Chile.

Qatar Airways has been growing steadily in recent years, along with its Gulf area competitor Etihad Airways, as both have established the region as key transfer hub for both business and leisure travelers going from the U.S. to Asia or Europe.

This announcement, mentioned in Bloomberg Business interview with CEO Akbar Al Baker, would continue that growth — and snag the airline some bragging rights at the same time.

But maybe not for long. View from the Wing reported that Qantas is could regain the title with a nonstop flight between Perth and London planned for 2017.

Still, none of these flights is as long as Singapore Airlines’ old Singapore–Newark nonstop route, which covered 9,536 miles and took 19 hours. It was discontinued in 2013, but could be coming back in 2018.