Qantas will start its Project Sunrise flight program in 2027, with the airline’s CEO Vanessa Hudson confirming the ultra-long-haul flight schedule to reporters at an Airbus sustainability summit in Toulouse.
Once launched, the Project Sunrise flights will connect the east coast of Australia to Europe and New York, with the new 21-hour services being operated by a new fleet of A350-1000. In May 2022, 12 of the aircraft type were ordered.
The first Project Sunrise A350-1000 delivery is expected in the second half of 2026.
“There have been some minor delays with regards to the XLR and the Sunrise aircraft,” management said on an earnings call in February. “We have a great relationship with Airbus and we’ll be working through those delays.”
These new aircraft that the airline has on order with Airbus are around “20% more fuel efficient than the aircraft that they are replacing”, Hudson stated, also confirming that carbon offsetting and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) are going to be a big parts of the airline’s sustainability roadmap.
Qantas is also expecting its first A321XLR to arrive in June this year. The first XLR entered the final assembly in November 2024. The XLR will progressively replace its 737s over the next decade. A total of four XLRs are expected by the end of 2025. The company has 28 firm orders for the XLR.