A Qatar Airways jet touched down in Auckland, New Zealand Monday, shattering the record for the world’s longest flight by distance.
The Boeing 777 took off from Doha, Qatar and was in the sky for 14,535 kilometers before landing in New Zealand.
The old record was set by an Emirates Airlines Dubai to Auckland flight, a 14,200 kilometer journey.
Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker called his company’s flight “an important milestone.”
The jet was in the sky for 16 hours, 23 minutes. It carried four pilots and 15 cabin crew members who served the passengers 1,100 cups of tea and coffee, 2,000 cold drinks and 1,036 meals.
As is the custom with inaugural flights, the plane was greeted in Auckland with water cannons.
The Qatar Airways record may be short-lived. Singapore Airlines has said it plans to institute non-stop service between Singapore and New York — a distance of 15,323 kilometers.
…