Fiji Times Friday 07 April 2017 BOTH Airbus and Boeing now offer aircraft that appear capable of flying non-stop commercial flights from Sydney to London — the “Holy Grail” for Australian carrier Qantas Airways Ltd.
As long as oil prices don’t go much higher than about $US70 ($F146) per barrel, the 20-hour flight can be financially viable, and could be on schedules within five years, aviation experts say.
Airbus has increased the range of its A350-900ULR to 9700 nautical miles (17,960 kms) from the 8700 nautical miles announced when it sold the plane to Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI) in 2015 for delivery next year, a spokesman told Reuters. Read more…