Qantas is smashing aviation records this year, not only by operating the first direct European service from Perth but by operating it in record time.
The carrier has, on more than one occasion, completed its Dreamliner service between London and Perth in just 15 hours and 45 minutes, beating the estimated time of 17-hours by more than hour.
This reduction in time means Australians are flying across the world in practically the same amount of time it takes for Sydneysiders to fly to Dallas.
According to The West Australian, the record journey has been achieved through an average flight speed to Perth of 938km/hr as well as a ground speed of 1,114km/hr.
Although the increased speed may make a few flyers nervous, Qantas Chief Technical Pilot, Captain Alex Passerini, said the carrier carefully monitors conditions on the route through high-tech integrated operations, dedicated weather forecasters and flight plan experts.
“It is the most technically challenging route that Qantas flies today because of that complexity of the airspace that we deal with and some of the challenges that poses.”
Captain Alex Passerini, Qantas Chief Technical Pilot
“It is very complex but we have a great team, very experienced and they do their jobs very well, so they contribute very significantly to the outcome of those flights.”
Qantas’ Dreamliner direct Perth-London service took off in March this year as the first step towards leading aviation down the path of ultra-long-haul flights, which may one day include non-stop services from Sydney to Rio de Janiero or Brisbane to Seattle.
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