(NEWS) MASCOT, Australia, 2026-Jun-17 — /Travel PR News/ — The Kangaroo Route is moving toward one of the biggest changes in its history, as Qantas prepares to remove the final stop between Australia’s east coast and London.
According to a press release published by Qantas, the airline will launch non-stop flights between Sydney and London in October 2027, marking the first time the route has been operated without a stop from Australia’s east coast. The announcement coincides with the unveiling of Qantas’ first Airbus A350-1000ULR in full livery at Airbus’ facility in Toulouse.
The new service forms part of Project Sunrise, Qantas’ long-running plan to operate ultra-long-haul flights linking Australia directly with major global cities. The first Sydney-London flights are scheduled to go on sale in February 2027, subject to regulatory approvals and aircraft certification.
The historic route has come a long way since Qantas first flew between Sydney and London in 1947. At that time, the journey took four days and involved seven stops, including Darwin, Singapore, Calcutta, Karachi, Cairo, Castel Benito and Rome. The new non-stop service is expected to cut up to four hours from current one-stop travel times.
The Airbus A350-1000ULR has been developed specifically for Project Sunrise and includes an additional 20,000-litre fuel tank, allowing the aircraft to fly more than 16,000 kilometres and operate for up to 22 hours non-stop. Qantas will take delivery of 12 aircraft, each configured with 238 seats across four cabins.
The aircraft cabin has been designed around ultra-long-haul comfort, with Qantas positioning the onboard experience around jetlag reduction, rest and wellbeing during exceptionally long journeys. The new flights will operate alongside Qantas’ existing Perth-London and Sydney-Singapore-London services.
Qantas said demand for ultra-long-haul flying continues to strengthen. Research commissioned by the airline in May 2026 found that Australian travellers’ intent to book non-stop ultra-long-haul flights had risen from 58% to 70% since February, increasing to 80% among premium travellers.
Since 2018, more than 1.7 million passengers have flown on Qantas’ existing non-stop long-haul services, including Perth to London, Rome and Paris, Melbourne to Dallas and Auckland to New York. The airline said these services have recorded the highest customer satisfaction scores across its international network.
Training is already underway ahead of the aircraft’s introduction, with Qantas pilots using Australia’s first A350 simulator in Sydney as well as training support from British Airways in the UK and Cathay Pacific in Hong Kong. By the time the twelfth A350ULR arrives, more than 360 pilots and 1,200 cabin crew are expected to be trained for Project Sunrise operations.
Sydney-New York has been confirmed as the next Project Sunrise route after Sydney-London, with launch timing expected to be announced next year.
