Airbus Flies 24 Hours Nonstop From Australia to France

Airbus (AIR.PA), opens new tab completed a marathon test flight lasting more than 24 hours that triggered ?a surge in online tracking, when an A350 jet being ?developed for record-beating commercial flights touched down in France from Melbourne on Tuesday. 

The test marks a key step in Qantas' (QAN.AX), opens new tab Project Sunrise, which aims to launch the world's ?longest commercial passenger services and reshape long-haul travel by eliminating ?stopovers between Australia



and Europe.

The specially adapted A350-1000ULR airliner is ?due to debut with the Australian carrier's nonstop Sydney-London route from ?2027. Airbus has been conducting a two-month test campaign on the aircraft ?since June.

Airbus said the aircraft, which boasts a specially designed extra fuel tank, remained in the air for 24 hours and 24 minutes, covering 23,075 km (14,338 miles) ?without stopping, before landing at the plane's factory in Toulouse, France.