What to Expect Flying QF1 from Sydney to London via Singapore

Qantas flight QF1 is the airline’s flagship “kangaroo route” from Sydney to London via Singapore. Departing from Sydney every afternoon, this Airbus A380 service takes around 24 hours to cover the 17,176km marathon to London.

This flight was suspended from late March 2020 until October 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When Qantas resumed flying from Sydney to London on 1 November 2021, it initially operated as a Boeing 787-9 service via Darwin, instead of Singapore. But on 19 June 2022, QF1 returned to its traditional Singapore stopover and was upgraded back to an Airbus A380 service with First Class available.

The return service QF2 departs Heathrow Airport every evening, arriving in Singapore the following afternoon and eventually landing in Sydney early the following morning – two days after leaving London.

Are you flying soon on QF1 from Sydney to London? This guide explains everything you need to know to maximise your experience and have an enjoyable flight!

Qantas Flight QF1: The Aircraft

Qantas flight QF1 is served by a refurbished Airbus A380 with 14 First, 70 Business, 60 Premium Economy and 341 Economy Class seats.

Wireless streaming entertainment via the Qantas entertainment App is not available, nor is in-flight internet, but there are individual in-flight entertainment touch screens available at every seat.

Economy Class

The Qantas A380 Economy class seats are 18 inches wide, have a fairly standard 31 inches of seat pitch and are laid out in a 3-4-3 configuration.

The best Economy seats on the Qantas A380 are 71D, 80A, 80K and the exit row seats, which all offer extra legroom. Qantas charges an extra $190 to select an extra legroom seat from Sydney to London and these are available on a “first come, first served” basis.

Read more: The Ultimate Qantas Economy Seat Guide

Premium Economy

Located at the rear of the upper deck, Qantas A380 Premium Economy is a comfortable way to fly. Premium Economy has a 2-3-2 layout, and each seat has 38 inches of pitch with a reasonable recline.

If you’re at a window seat, there are handy side storage compartments available. However, there is not enough legroom in Qantas Premium Economy to get out of a window seat without disturbing (or climbing over) your seat neighbour in the aisle seat.

Business Class

Qantas’ new Airbus A380 Business suites, laid out in a staggered 1-2-1 configuration, are a very comfortable way to fly. All seats convert to fully lie-flat beds and have direct aisle access.

Read more: The Ultimate Qantas Business Class Seat Guide

First Class

There are 14 private First Class suites ensconced in the pointy end of the Qantas A380’s lower deck. There are five rows of seats are in a 1-1-1 layout. Many frequent flyers prefer the “A” window seats on the left hand side because these are the most private – but there are no “bad” seats in First Class!

Getting an Upgrade on QF1

If you’ve booked your ticket with Qantas (i.e. you’re booked under the “QF1” flight number – and not with one of the many airline partners that codeshares on this flight), it is possible to upgrade from most fare types using Qantas Frequent Flyer points. However, the cheapest “Economy Sale” fares are ineligible for upgrades and it is not possible to upgrade from a Classic Flight Reward booking to First Class.

Here is the number of Qantas points required for a Classic Upgrade Reward on flight QF1. The same amounts apply if flying in the opposite direction on QF2:

You can request an upgrade online, and you’ll find out whether you’ve been successful up to 7 days before the flight. Qantas Frequent Flyer members with the highest status get priority in the Qantas upgrade lottery, so it can be difficult for Bronze and Silver frequent flyers to upgrade using points – especially on this very popular route.

If you’re flying all the way from Sydney to London, you would need to request an upgrade either for both QF1 sectors (Sydney-Singapore and Singapore-London) or neither sector. You cannot elect to upgrade only one of the sectors. That said, it is possible that your upgrade request could be unsuccessful between Sydney and Singapore, but still clear for the Singapore-London leg. In this case, you’ll only be charged for the upgrade on the second segment.

The airline may also invite you to bid for a Qantas Bid Now upgrade using a mix of points and cash, although this is only offered on flights where the premium cabins are unlikely to be full. QF1 is such a popular flight that it’s rare to see an empty seat in Business or First Class.

Sydney Airport Lounges

If you’re flying in Business class, or have Qantas Gold status, Oneworld Sapphire status or a Qantas Club membership, you can use the Qantas International Business Lounge at Sydney Airport. This is an adequate lounge with buffet food, a good selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and showers. But if you’re eligible to use the Emirates Lounge instead, and it’s open, this will remain a superior option until the Qantas Business lounge is eventually refurbished.

If you’re flying in First Class, have Qantas Platinum or Platinum One status, or hold Oneworld Emerald status, you are eligible to use the excellent Qantas First Lounge in Sydney.

The Qantas First Lounge offers a-la-carte dining, great runway views, a spa and excellent service. If you’re flying on QF1 in First Class, be sure to ask for a spa appointment if the First Class host calls the day before your flight!

The Singapore Transit Experience

Upon arrival in Singapore, all QF1 passengers are required to disembark the plane. Do not leave anything on board as the aircraft will be fully cleaned during the transit in Singapore.

You’ll have around an hour at Changi Airport before your flight commences boarding again. Beware that you will need to pass through security screening again at the gate, before you re-board the flight. (Because of this, make sure any duty-free alcohol that you buy in Sydney remains in a sealed plastic bag if you’re flying all the way to London – this will be confiscated when you re-board in Singapore if the bag has been opened!)

If you’re eligible for Business Lounge access, the Qantas Singapore Lounge offers plenty of showers and some good dining options.

Platinum & Platinum One frequent flyers, as well as First class passengers, can use the excellent Qantas First Lounge in Singapore which first opened in November 2019 (and then reopened in June 2022).

If you’re eligible, you may consider visiting the Emirates Lounge instead.

The British Airways Lounge is also available, and is a great option in the early evening. It can get crowded late in the evening when QF1 passes through, but it’s usually very quiet in the early evening when QF2 stops in Singapore in the other direction.

If you’re flying in Business or First Class, you can also visit the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge in Singapore. This is an excellent lounge with great dining options – but you can only get in with a Business or First Class boarding pass on a Oneworld airline.

Depending on your ticket, Qantas may allow you to stop over in Singapore for a few days at no extra cost (other than a small difference in taxes). This can be a great way to break up the very long trip between Australia and Europe!

Once the Singapore transit is over, your new London-based cabin crew will welcome you on board the second sector of QF1 from Singapore to London (which happens to be one of Qantas’ only fifth-freedom routes alongside Auckland-New York).

In-Flight Meals on QF1

The meals you’re served will depend on your class of travel. All passengers are served a full meal after departure from Sydney, followed by a light refreshment before landing in Singapore. A late dinner is then served after departure from Singapore, followed finally by a full breakfast around two hours before arriving in London.

In the meantime, snacks and drinks are available upon request. If you’re in Economy, there is a self-service snack bar at the back of the A380 lower deck. So you won’t go hungry!

You can see an example of a Business Class menu from QF1 on AFF’s Qantas Business Class meals & menus thread.

The Kangaroo Route

The QF1 route from Sydney to London is historically known as the “kangaroo route”. Today, modern technology makes it possible to fly from Australia’s east coast to Europe with just a single refuelling stop in Singapore. In fact, it’s even now possible to fly non-stop from Perth to London (which Qantas does daily as QF9) and Qantas plans to commence non-stop flights from Sydney to London in 2025.

But this wasn’t always the case. Back in 1957, Qantas Super Constellation aircraft would take around five days to fly from Sydney to London with fuelling stops in Darwin, Jakarta, Singapore, Bangkok, Kolkata, Karachi, Bahrain and Istanbul!

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 90 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include aviation, economics & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.