The oil embargo of 1973 was a miserable period when American towns banned Christmas lights to save electricity, billboards urged citizens to “turn off the damn lights” and filling stations dispensed gasoline by appointment only. The crisis got everyone thinking seriously about innovation and energy efficiency. One result: the massive and efficient jet engines that power the world’s longest commercial flights today.
Qatar Airways just announced plans to launch a 9,034-mile flight lasting 18 hours and 30 minutes. Above: A Qatar Airways’s 25th Boeing 787 powered GEnx engines. Images credit: Adam Senatori for GE Reports
Starting on Feb. 1, Emirates launched the world’s longest passenger flight between Dubai and Panama City. A westbound Boeing 777-200LR powered by a pair of GE90 engines covers the 8,950 miles that separates them on a single tank of gas in 17 hours and 35 minutes. But that record may soon topple. Qatar Airways just announced plans to launch a 9,034-mile flight lasting 18 hours and 30 minutes between Doha and Auckland in New Zealand. That route would also use a Boeing 777. Finally, United said it would start the longest flight originating at a U.S. airport between San Francisco and Singapore. If approved by regulators, it will be the world’s longest scheduled route flown by a GEnx-powered Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.
Related Posts
GE Aerospace is a world-leading provider of jet and turboprop engines, as well as integrated systems for commercial, military, business and general aviation aircraft.
