SINGAPORE AIRLINES TO LAUNCH WORLD’S NEW LONGEST FLIGHT

If you missed flying during the COVID-19 pandemic, you’re going to love this new announcement made by Singapore Airlines.

It has added a direct flight from Singapore to New York to its list of routes and when it commences in November, it will break the record for the world’s longest flight.

Well, the irony of it all is that the new achievement is purely because of an added distance of three kilometres.

The new route will connect Singapore’s Changi Airport and New York’s John F Kennedy (JFK) International Airport, replacing the former world’s longest flight that served Newark Liberty International Airport in nearby New Jersey, reports Business Insider.

The distance of three kilometres adds up to a total of 15,347 kilometres. But, when in flight, the actual route that a plane flies can vary a lot.

The flight is scheduled to take 18 hours and five minutes, and will cross various continents.

The Independent reports that, due to the International Date Line, passengers from New York will lose a day along the way. If you depart from JFK at 10:30pm on Monday, you will arrive in Singapore at 06:10am on Wednesday.

But, is there still a demand for international travel? According to Lee Lik Hsin, executive vice-president commercial for Singapore Airlines, there are some early signs of optimism about a recovery in air travel.

"Our customers say that they are increasingly confident about air travel. We will continue to ramp up existing services and reinstate other points as the demand for both passenger and cargo services return."

Because the new route will only be launched next month, it’s obvious that no one has had a chance to fly it yet. But, if you want to get an idea of what it’s going to be like, watch Stefan Drury’s video below as he was onboard the current world’s longest flight.

Image credit: Newshub