JULY 2018 27
SEEING THE SUNRISE
Sunrise
WRITER: JORDAN CHONGUltra long-haul, ultra
big challenge
W
hen Singapore Airlines
(SIA) reclaims the title
for the world’s longest
passenger flight by distance
in October, it will do so with an Airbus
A350-900ULR (Ultra Long Range)
configured with just 161 seats.
The two-class A350-900ULR will
feature 67 in business class and 94
in premium economy class. And no
economy seats.
Even with that low seat count, SIA
chief executive Goh Choon Phong
says there will be days in the northern
hemisphere winter when the aircraft
will face operating restrictions due to
the prevailing winds.
“I think there could be some
payload concerns, on the cargo side
particularly,” Goh told reporters on
the sidelines of the International
Air Transport Association (IATA)
annual general meeting in Sydney
on June 4.
“There could be some payload
concerns during the winter coming
back.”
Goh’s comments about the
A350-900ULR’s likely performance
on the 8,285nm mission – remember
the service does not begin until
October 11 – highlights the challenge
facing both Airbus and Boeing as
the pair races to develop an airframe
capable of meeting the ambitious
targets within Qantas’s Project
Sunrise.
That is, flying from Australia’s east
coast to both London and New York
(among other destinations) with what
the airline wants as a commercially‘I think there
could be
some payload
concerns,
on the
cargo side
particularly.’
GOH CHOON PHONGQantas aims to go one step
further from its nonstop London-
Perth flights operated by Boeing
787-9s to nonstop Sydney-
London flights.QANTAS