The Quokka isn’t the cutest animal in Australia, it’s also potentially the fastest commercial aircraft after setting a new flight time record on services from Perth to London.
Qantas’ Boeing 787-9 managed to fly from Western Australia to Europe in just 16 hours and 35 minutes, beating the published schedule by 45 minutes.
According to Perth Now, the record time was set on 24 April when the pilot maintained an average flight speed of 886 km/hr and a ground speed of 1,020 km/hr.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce celebrating the 787s inaugural non-stop flight from Perth to London.
The record follows on from last month’s record-breaking flight from London to Perth, which completed the non-stop journey in 15 hours and 45 minutes.
Increasingly shorter services are a relief for flyers struggling with the idea of flying continuously for 17 hours despite special onboard features, such as extra legroom and fewer seats, designed to make the journey as comfortable as possible.
The 787 keeps breaking record for the Flying Kangaroo.
Record-breaking direct services are also good news for the airline and its recent order of six more Boeing 787-9s, which could be used on rumoured ultra-long-haul services such as Brisbane to Seattle or Sydney to Rio de Janeiro.
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