I’ve been very fortunate to be able to fly almost at the drop of a hat. I love very long flights (my friends think I’m weird, you may too) and have taken some of the world’s longest flights including the world’s longest, Newark, NJ (EWR) to Singapore (SIN) on Singapore Airlines (SQ) using an Airbus A340-500 (345).
These flights have been made possible with advancement in aviation and primarily two airplanes: The Boeing 777-200LR (LR is for Longer Range) and the Airbus A340-500. The Airbus Web site states that there are 29 of these airplanes in operation and a total of 35 have been ordered. It has a range of 9,000 nautical miles. On the other hand, the Boeing Company says that the 777-200LR has a range of 9,395 nautical miles with a full passenger load of 301. They’ve delivered 36 of the 56 airplanes that’s been ordered. Don’t let these numbers fool you as the airlines can configure the airplanes differently so they can increase the range and they have.
Oh, I would be remiss if I did not mention the Boeing 777-300ER which is used by one of the airlines on the list. Boeing has delivered 206 of the 408 on order. The Boeing 777-200ER, the workhorse 777 is also on the list and allows these routes to be possible. But enough of the numbers and planes, let’s get to the list.
I’ve compiled what is today’s top 10 longest flights by distance flown along with the airlines flying them plus some more details. Some routes which have been flown in the past are currently not being flown, such as Bangkok, Thailand (BKK) to New York’s JFK which was flown by Thai Airways (TG) on an Airbus A340-500 so it was not included.
Enjoy and please add your comment below. I’d love to hear if you’ve flown any of these routes, airlines and/or airplanes. I’ve flown #1, #9 and #10. #6 continues to elude me in either direction. I’ve flown the #3 route, but made a stop in Sal Island using a South African Airways (SA) Boeing 747-400. Flown #2, but made a stop in Tokyo-Narita using a Singapore Airlines (SQ) Boeing 747-400.
| Top 10 World’s Longest Flights by Distance flown | |||||||||||||||
| Rank | Miles | Routing Information | |||||||||||||
| 1 | 9,539 | Singapore Changi International(SIN) to Newark-Liberty International, Newark, NJ (EWR) on Singapore Airlines (SQ) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| SQ22 | SIN | EWR | 10:40a | 5:50p | same day | 19:10 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| SQ21 | EWR | SIN | 11:00p | 5:50a | +2 days | 18:50 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| 2 | 8,771 | Singapore Changi International (SIN) to Los Angeles International, Los Angeles, CA (LAX) on Singapore Airlines (SQ) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| SQ38 | SIN | LAX | 4:15p | 5:45p | same day | 16:30 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| SQ37 | LAX | SIN | 9:15p | 5:35a | +2 days | 17:20 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| 3 | 8,448 | Atlanta Hartsfield International, Atlanta, GA (ATL) to Johannesburg International, Johannesburg South Africa (JNB) on Delta Air Lines (DL) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| DL200 | ATL | JNB | 8:10p | 5:15p | +1 day | 15:05 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| DL201 | JNB | ATL | 8:45p | 7:00a | +1 day | 16:15 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| 4 | 8,335 | Dubai International, Dubai UAE (DXB) to Los Angeles International, Los Angeles, CA (LAX) on Emirates Airlines (EK) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| EK215 | DXB | LAX | 8:20a | 1:55p | same day | 16:35 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| EK216 | LAX | DXB | 4:45p | 7:40p | +1 day | 15:55 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| 5 | 8,260 | Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi International, Bangkok Thailand (BKK) to Los Angeles International, Los Angeles, CA (LAX) on Thai Airways (TG) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| TG794 | BKK | LAX | 7:20p | 9:25p | same day | 16:05 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| TG795 | LAX | BKK | 11:10p | 6:40A | +2 days | 17:30 | Airbus A340-500 (345) | ||||||||
| 6 | 8,164 | Dubai International, Dubai UAE (DXB) to Houston-Intercontinental, Houston, TX (IAH) on Emirates Airlines (EK) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| EK211 | DXB | IAH | 9:50a | 4:25p | same day | 16:20 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| EK212 | IAH | DXB | 6:50p | 6:45p | +1 day | 14:55 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| 7 | 8,099 | Dubai International, Dubai UAE (DXB) to San Francisco International, San Francisco, CA (SFO) on Emirates Airlines (EK) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| EK225 | DXB | SFO | 8:45a | 1:45p | same day | 16:00 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| EK226 | SFO | DXB | 4:45p | 7:20p | +1 day | 15:35 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| 8 | 8,068 | Hong Kong-Chep Lap Kok International Hong Kong (HKG) to John F. Kennedy International, Queens, NY (JFK) on Cathay Pacific Airways (CX) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| CX830 | HKG | JFK | 9:30a | 1:10p | same day | 15:40 | Boeing 777-300ER (77W) | ||||||||
| CX831 | JFK | HKG | 2:55p | 6:55p | +1 day | 16:00 | Boeing 777-300ER (77W) | ||||||||
| CX840 | HKG | JFK | 5:00p | 8:55p | same day | 15:55 | Boeing 777-300ER (77W) | ||||||||
| CX841 | JFK | HKG | 10:10a | 2:05p | +1 day | 15:50 | Boeing 777-300ER (77W) | ||||||||
| 9 | 8,061 | Newark-Liberty International, NJ (EWR) to Hong Kong Chep lap Kok International (HKG) on Continental Airlines (CO) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| CO99 | EWR | HKG | 3:15p | 7:05p | +1 day | 15:50 | Boeing 777-200ER (777) | ||||||||
| CO98 | HKG | EWR | 10:25a | 2:00p | same day | 15:35 | Boeing 777-200ER (777) | ||||||||
| 10 | 8,043 | Doha International, Doha Qatar (DOH) to Houston-Intercontinental, Houston, TX (IAH) on Qatar Airways (QR) | |||||||||||||
| Flight # | From | To | Depart | Arrive | Duration | Aircraft Type | |||||||||
| QR77 | DOH | IAH | 9:50a | 6:10p | same day | 16:20 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
| QR78 | IAH | DOH | 8:30p | 7:40p | +1 day | 15:10 | Boeing 777-200LR (77L) | ||||||||
Interesting bit of trivia! The longest flight I have taken was DFW-NRT on an MD-11. It was long enough ago that I don’t remember the flight time.
Awesome; on an MD-11 huh? It is showing 13:25 and is current flown by American Airlines with a Boeing 777-200ER. The total distance is 6,421 miles, still way shy of the top ten.
What about the flight from Chicago to New Delhi. I just took it recently, I know it was like 16 hrs flight.
JK,
Chicago to Delhi is 7,478 miles and is scheduled at 14:40 on American Airlines. Still not in the top 10.
Flown #6: iah -> dxb.
How come iah -> dxb is 8164 miles and
sfo -> dxb is only 8099 miles. (plz update the airport code as well to sfo)
Something is not right.
Please verify!
Hi Ali,
San Francisco to Dubai is indeed 8,099 miles and Houston to Dubai is 8,164.
I’ve updated the airport code. Sorry about that.
I’ve flown #5 (LAX-BKK). LAX to BKK gate-to-gate is scheduled at 18 hrs (15 min taxi on each end tacked onto planned flight time). Thankfully, I was able to upgrade to business class becasue of a 2-cabin configuration with lots of business-class seats.
Sweet @Ken! Glad you were able to do the upgrade. 18 hours is grueling…
What about all the flights to Australia, eg flight from Sydney to Dallas which 8,578 miles?
unbelievable air lines but today believe on Singapore airlines 19hrs stay in air i like SQ and I love SQ
These aren’t the longest flights in the world. They’re only from America. What about London to Sydney
Jack,
London to Sydney flights stop in Asia; Bangkok, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, etc.