Arabic version: رحلة تجريبية كانتاس تستقطب 3.6 مليون متابع عبر الإنترنت

According to ABC News, more than 3.6 million people tracked a Qantas aircraft online as it completed a 24-hour test flight from Melbourne to Toulouse, France.

The specially adapted Airbus A350-1000ULR flew for 24 hours and 24 minutes, covering 23,075 kilometres without stopping before landing at Airbus’s factory in Toulouse. Airbus said the aircraft has a specially designed extra fuel tank.

Flight-tracking provider Flightradar24 said the journey was its second-most-tracked flight ever, behind a 2024 flight carrying Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin. Users followed the aircraft’s progress northwards via Canada.

The aircraft is one of 12 modified A350-1000ULRs ordered by Qantas for Project Sunrise. The planes are designed to link Australia’s east coast with London and New York in about 20 hours.

Qantas expects its first aircraft, which carries 20,000 litres of fuel and seats 238 passengers, to arrive in April 2027. Daily nonstop flights between Sydney and London are expected to begin in October 2027, with journeys projected to take 19 to 21 hours depending on routing and winds.