Friday Mar 14, 2025
Thursday, 3 March 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
AFP (Wellington): An Emirates Airbus A380 touched down in New Zealand on Wednesday, completing what is believed to be the world’s longest non-stop scheduled commercial flight.
The service from Dubai to Auckland covered 14,200 kilometres (8,824 miles), according to industry website airwaysnews.com, pipping Qantas’ 13,800-kilometre Sydney-Dallas route launched in 2014.
It said the route was also the longest in duration, with passengers set to spend 17 hours 15 minutes in the air during the return leg from Auckland to Dubai.
However, that record is expected to be short-lived because Emirates’ upcoming Dubai-Panama City service will take 17 hours 35 minutes when it launches later this month.
Emirates described it as “one of the longest air routes in the world by distance”.
“But with the assistance of clever technology and good planning, passengers will get to their destination in the shortest possible time,” it said.
“Emirates will be using flexible routes, which can vary by day, taking advantage of tail winds and avoiding head winds to reduce the time in the air.”
The inaugural Dubai-Auckland flight was made by an A380 but the regular service will be carried out using the Boeing 777. New Zealand Transport Minister Simon Bridges said the non-stop service, which cuts three hours off current Dubai-Auckland travel times, improved New Zealand’s connectivity to the rest of the world.
“Direct flights will encourage even more trade and tourism between our two countries, by offering more choice to passengers and freight customers,” he said.
Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.
Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.