Qantas Unveils First Project Sunrise Route: Direct Sydney to London Flights from Next Year

Direct flights between Sydney and London are set to take off from next year after Qantas unveiled the first route of its long-promised Project Sunrise.

The announcement came after Qantas took delivery of its latest widebody, long-haul jet, an Airbus A350-1000 specialised for flying the 21-hour journey without a stopover.

Flights are set to begin between the two cities from October next year.

Qantas has previously indicated it also wants to start direct flights from other east coast cities to the British capital, and to other destinations including New York.

"Qantas was built on the belief that Australia's distance from the rest of the world should never stand in the way," Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson said in a statement.

"The pioneering spirit of generations of our people has forged that path ever since, and today is the most significant step in that mission in our 105-year history."

Modified aircraft to fly route

The Red Kangaroo already operates direct London-Perth flights.

Project Sunrise, first unveiled under previous chief executive Alan Joyce in 2017, saw the airline challenge Airbus and Boeing to develop planes capable of ultra-long-haul non-stop routes from Australia's east coast to major centres including New York and London.

But Project Sunrise has also been hit by challenges of its own, with this first aircraft delivery occurring five years behind schedule due to COVID impacts and supply chain delays.

The 12 modified Airbus A350-1000ULR jets ordered by Qantas for Project Sunrise are designed to fly up to 22 hours with 238 passengers on board.

They feature an extra fuel tank that will increase the range of the aircraft by an extra 1,800 kilometres.

The flights are so long that much of the fuel is used merely to carry the weight of the rest of the fuel.

Sunrise fares to cost 'a premium'

The journey between Sydney and London is expected to take between 19 and 22 hours, compared with the current QF1 route which, including a stopover in Singapore, takes 25 hours.

It will eliminate the stop over on the fabled Kangaroo Route, which once took five days and multiple stops to complete.

The project is a major gamble for Qantas, involving billions of dollars in aircraft, cabin upgrades and research into passenger health on ultra-long flights.

To succeed it must convince travellers to pay more to avoid layovers, while minimising the discomfort from long flights.

"What they are selling is time, and they absolutely need to get a premium on all the cabins, particularly business and premium economy," said aviation analyst John Strickland.

Qantas named Project Sunrise after the airline's double sunrise endurance flights during World War Two, which remained airborne long enough to see two sunrises.

The airline has estimated the project could add more than $400 million a year to earnings.

Ms Hudson said in February that ticket prices could be around 20 per cent higher than one-stop alternatives in premium cabins.

But analysts have since warned that high energy prices resulting from the Gulf conflict have raised the break-even threshold.