- Due to the closure of Niger’s airspace by the governing military group, flights connecting Europe and southern Africa must divert around the volatile country. The shutdown has impacted companies like British Airways and Air France. The longest nonstop flight in 2023 has a 32% longer range than the longest flight in 1997.
- In 2025, Qantas plans to introduce a new London to Sydney route that will be the longest flight in the world. The journey from Heathrow Airport in London to Sydney will take more than 19 hours, which is 11% longer than the current record-holder, a Singapore Airlines aircraft from Singapore to New York.
- With 16 of the last 27 years’ longest flights flown by Singapore Airlines, the airline has long been a pioneer in ultra-long-haul travel. The distance has increased by 32% since 1997, when South African Airways ran the longest trip between New York and Johannesburg.
- OAG, a distributor of aviation statistics, released this information, noting the longest route during the previous 27 years while only taking into account services that ran at least twice weekly throughout the whole year.
- Flights between Europe and a number of African countries have been hampered by the ongoing conflict in Niger, West Africa. Niger service has be discontinued by Air France till further notice.
- A representative from Air France stated to Bloomberg that travel times to and from African countries are anticipated to increase by 15 minutes to 2 hours.
- Additionally, until August 11, Air France flights to Mali and Burkina Faso have been suspended. The most impacted routes are those to Entebbe, Uganda, and Johannesburg and Cape Town in South Africa, operated by the Dutch flag airline KLM. There would be some impact on flights to Lagos, Nigeria, and Accra-Ghana, but only “to a lesser extent.”
- Niger is also being avoided by airlines including Swiss International Airlines, Lufthansa, and Virgin Atlantic Airways. Passengers are forced to fly for longer periods of time as a result of detours, and these extra flights cost more in fuel and labor.
- Japan Airlines and Finnair are presently paying thousands of dollars to fly an additional four hours between Helsinki and Tokyo, the scenario is comparable to what is occurring in Russia owing to the country’s shutdown of its airspace during times of conflict.
Source:
Business Insider
