Are virgin about to break a world record for longest flight time on a commercial airline?

[serfty]

CDG-BNE is some 300 miles shorter than LHR-SYD via GCMAP Great Circle Mapper

According to the CNN article, the QF flight went 500 miles further the the great circle at 11,060.

According to flight aware, they managed to add to the 10,273mi great circle distance and fly 11,314mi.

 

[Kefci2000]

Landed 19:45



Actual: 18,209 km (Planned: 16,551 km/Direct: 16,553 km)





Route

LATRA UM133 UTUVA UM728 DOKAR DCT SUNEV DCT NOSTO/N0480F350 UL612 SIT UL607 PAXIS L607 NOZ A1 CVO A727 SEMRU M872 SILKA UM872 PMA UL883 UMRAN UM628 MIGMA/N0489F370 UM628 KATIT UM440 MIDGU M440 TULBU M628 TOLDA L555 TOTOX P574 MMV L896 ADKIT N563 MDN/N0483F390 L762 MOZES M300 SALAX A576 SJ A464 TPG M774 POVOT/N0477F410 M774 KIKEM A464 UNVAT V327

 

[Kefci2000]

~ 11,314.55 miles serfty

 

[StevoQFtraveller]

Well done VA! Good for another Aussie record!

 

[milehighclub]

I am guessing that this is ferry flight and only has crew onboard. This was arranged by the French Government to get people back to France, not Australians back to home (as this was a charter).

They've got 2 weeks stuck in a small hotel room to look forward to so now they will have something to talk about when they get out.

Whilst the exemption for crew to not isolate has been removed, they are exempt from isolating in a hotel and can do so at home. I suspect VA will do the same as QF and offer crew a hotel if they wish to isolate away from their family.

 

[Fifa]

Wow - good on VA!

 

[dajop]

I am guessing that this is ferry flight and only has crew onboard.

Yes, it doesn’t appear on the Brisbane Airport arrivals board (on their website) suggesting it didn’t carry any passengers, only staff.

 

[serfty]

~ 11,314.55 miles serfty

What's a Km among friends ...?

 

[davidj]

If they don’t land in the next 5 minutes (which they won’t) they will have broken the record.

If they don't land in the next 5 mins, they will run out of fuel?

I assume they would have left cdg fully loaded on A1, planning for 19hrs plus reserve plus alternate.

Just goes to show what these birds are capable of, ignoring economics.

 

[Aus ATC]

I am guessing that this is ferry flight and only has crew onboard. This was arranged by the French Government to get people back to France, not Australians back to home (as this was a charter).

The irony of these times - common sense would suggest that while there was no doubt a plane load of French folks wanting to get home, there would similarly be a plane load of Aussies in or around Paris wanting to do the same - a little cooperation would go a long way, not to mention helping VAs bottom line just a bit!

 

[jb747]

Same could be said for project sunrise though - empty plane!

Oh, I quite agree. There was nothing about those flights of any real note. They most certainly were not research flights. They were intended to get on the news. Which they did.

 

[jb747]

If they don't land in the next 5 mins, they will run out of fuel?

They are required to have 30 minutes of fuel at the end of the landing roll. If you are projected to have less than that, it’s a fuel emergency.

I assume they would have left cdg fully loaded on A1, planning for 19hrs plus reserve plus alternate.

I’m not sure that it would necessarily have had full fuel tanks. They would have worked up a plan for their load. That rarely means maximum fuel. I never saw full tanks in the 380, and can only recall it once or twice on the 747.

There is NO requirement for them to have an alternate, unless the weather forces it.

 

[Zanzaid]

I am guessing that this is ferry flight and only has crew onboard. This was arranged by the French Government to get people back to France, not Australians back to home (as this was a charter).

There was 3 buses of people being directed into a hotel at Southbank last night though as i walked past, with quite a number of luggage around. I assume they came from this flight, unless there was another flight that came in.

 

[dajop]

There was 3 buses of people being directed into a hotel at Southbank last night though as i walked past, with quite a number of luggage around. I assume they came from this flight, unless there was another flight that came in.

There was a Qatar Airways flight arriving at 17:20 according to the BNE website:

Flight Arrivals/Departures - Brisbane Airport

www.bne.com.au

 

[Isochronous]

Good to see VA wipe the smile off the smug Joyce's face.

 

[Danger]

Good to see VA wipe the smile off the smug Joyce's face.

Has anyone seen any coverage of it in the mainstream media, though? Qantas's 'groundbreaking' flights got loads of publicity. Is it simply the case that Virgin hasn't because it's PR team didn't blow its own trumpet?

 

[Mattg]

Has anyone seen any coverage of it in the mainstream media, though? Qantas's 'groundbreaking' flights got loads of publicity. Is it simply the case that Virgin hasn't because it's PR team didn't blow its own trumpet?

None whatsoever!

This could have been a good PR opportunity for VA, and I think they really missed the boat (or are extremely distracted by other things at the moment).

 

[UP4014]

It would be stupid for Virgin to go looking for publicity on the longest flight at the same time as having their hand our wanting a billion bucks of taxpayer money.

 

[Ekka]

It would be stupid for Virgin to go looking for publicity on the longest flight at the same time as having their hand our wanting a billion bucks of taxpayer money.

Why, exactly? VA did not do so, but why do you term their breaking a record and having the gall to mention it as stupid?

 

[Must...Fly!]

It would be an unhelpful public distraction from the real issues.