If you’re like most people, you probably have a strong aversion to long flights – and who can blame you.
But whether you dislike long flights, or want to rack up those airline miles, there are several long non-stop flights that you will either want to take or avoid.
The world’s longest non-stop flight is from Singapore to New York.
This flight takes at least 18 hours and 50 minutes, assuming there are no flight delays, and it covers 15,349 km or 9,537 miles.
The world’s other longest non-stop flights are also mostly between destinations in North America or Britain and countries in the Pacific.
There are even longer planned flights for the future, including a direct flight from Hong Kong to New York, which would take at least 19 hours to complete.
Long flights are safe, but they can dehydrate you, and you get increased exposure to potentially cancer-causing radiation.
These are the 10 longest non-stop flights in the world. The time given for each flight assumes no delays, so the actual flight time could be longer.
(SQ-23) Singapore (SIN) to New York (JFK): 18 hours and 50 minutes
(SQ-21) Singapore (SIN) to Newark (EWR): 18 hours and 45 minutes
(SQ-37) Los Angeles (LAX) to Singapore (SIN): 17 hours 50 minutes
(AI-176) San Francisco (SFO) to Bengaluru (BLR): 17 hours and 45 minutes
(UA-101) Houston (IAH) to Sydney (SYD): 17 hours and 35 minutes
(SQ 31) San Francisco (SFO) to Singapore (SIN): 17 hours and 35 minutes
(QF-9) Perth (PER) to London (LHR): 17 hours and 25 minutes
(UA-1) San Francisco (SFO) to Singapore (SIN): 17 hours and 25 minutes
(QF-8) Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW) to Sydney (SYD): 17 hours and 20 minutes
(AI-107) Hyderabad (HYD) to Chicago (ORD): 16 hours and 45 minutes
Longest Non-Stop Flight By Distance
The longest non-stop flight by distance is from Singapore to New York City at 15,349 km or 9,537 miles.
Longest Domestic Flight in the World
The world’s longest domestic flight is from Saint-Denis, Réunion to Paris, France.
The flight takes 11 hours and 40 minutes to complete and covers a distance of 9,349 km or 5,809 miles.
Longest Flight With Stops
The longest flight with stops is British Airways BA-16, which takes off from Sydney and lands in London, stopping at Singapore.
This flight covers 17,016 km or 10,573 miles in 22 hours.
The Aircraft Used for Very Long Flights
Airbus
Airbus primarily provides these 3 planes for ultra long haul flights:
Airbus A350 XWB Ultra Long Range can fly up to 18,000 km or 11,184 miles.
The A380 can fly up to 14,800km or 9,196 miles.
The A350 can fly up to 15,000km or 9,320 miles.
Boeing
Boeing provides the 3 following planes for long-distance flights.
The Boeing 777-200LR can fly up to 17,466 km or 10,840 miles.
The Boeing 777-8X can fly up to 16,170 km or 10,050 miles.
The Boeing 787-9 can fly up to 14,800 km or 9,196 miles.
The Longest Non-Stop Flights in the Future
Multiple planned non-stop flights from cities like London and New York to places like Hong Kong, and Sydney could be the longest non-stop flights in the future.
For example, Cathay Pacific plans on launching a New York to Hong Kong flight over the Pacific Ocean that will take 16 to 17 hours.
Qantas Airways also plans to launch a 19-hour direct flight between Sydney and London.
Long Non-Stop Flights Aren’t Exactly Good For Your Health
A non-stop flight could damage your health if you’re already suffering from a health condition that will be aggravated by a long flight.
Otherwise, long non-stop flights generally won’t damage your health.
Dehydration
Airplane cabins have a humidity level lower than 20%, equal to California’s Mojave Desert and even dryer than the Sahara desert.
You will likely experience fluid loss on a long flight – for instance, the average woman loses around 1.6 liters of water during a 10-hour flight.
Infection
You’re more likely to become ill on an airplane if you’re dehydrated.
You could also fall ill if seated next to an ill passenger during a long flight.
Deep Vein Thrombosis
Deep vein thrombosis is when you experience a blot in one of your body’s deep veins, usually your lower leg or thigh.
Some passengers, especially if they’re overweight, were recently pregnant, or have a family history of DVT, are more likely to experience this during long flights.
Radiation
You’re exposed to cosmic ionizing radiation from space every time you fly.
This radiation is linked to cancer, but is not dangerous during short flights.
Repeated long flights could increase your radiation exposure that increases the risk of some type of cancer later in life.
The Shortest Flight in the World
The world’s shortest flight run by a scheduled airline service is between Westray and Papa Westray in Scotland.
This flight lasts only 47 seconds during good wind flow and covers 1.7 miles.
In conclusion:
The world’s longest flight is from Singapore to New York. It takes almost 19 hours to complete and covers 15,349 km or 9,537 miles.
Both Boeing and Airbus have developed planes specifically for ultra long haul flights.
There are plans to create even longer flights, such as Sydney to London or Hong Kong to New York, which would take over 17 hours to complete.
Long flights are generally safe, but you’re likely to get dehydrated during them because of low air cabin humidity.
You could also fall ill during a long flight if you’re seated next to ill passengers, and you’re more exposed to radiation during long flights.
Ella Dunham, a Freelance Travel Journalist and Marketing Manager, boasts an impressive career spanning eight years in the travel and tourism sectors.
Honored as one of "30 Under 30" by TTG Media (the world’s very first weekly travel trade newspaper), a "Tour Operator Travel Guru" and "Legend Award" winner, Ella is also a Fellow of the Institute of Travel, a Member of the Association of Women Travel Executives, has completed over 250 travel modules, and hosts travel-focused segments on national radio shows where she provides insights on travel regulations and destinations.
Ella has visited over 40 countries (with 10 more planned this year).
