Qantas’ plan to fly non-stop from London to Sydney has suffered another setback, after Airbus said the new planes needed for the 22-hour trip would not arrive at the end of the year as planned.
The delay pushes back the delivery of the specially equipped Airbus A350 aircraft that are meant to make Project Sunrise possible, leaving the airline’s long-awaited ultra-long-haul service still out of reach. The aircraft sit at the centre of Qantas’ $15 billion fleet renewal, making the timetable slip more than a scheduling problem.
Project Sunrise is Qantas’ plan to link the east coast of Australia with London and New York without stopping. The airline has promoted the service as a new chapter in long-haul travel, but it depends on aircraft built and configured for journeys that stretch to 22 hours. Airbus had been expected to deliver those planes by the end of the year, and that timing has now shifted.
The setback matters because the aircraft are not a side project. The A350 is the foundation of Qantas’ case for opening ultra-long-haul routes that would change how it connects Australia to some of its most important global destinations. Without them, the airline cannot move from ambition to operation.
For now, the question is no longer whether Qantas wants Project Sunrise, but when the planes needed to fly it will actually arrive. Airbus has said they will not come at the end of the year as planned, and that leaves Qantas waiting on the hardware that its long-haul future depends on.
