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Written by Capt Lim,
on 16-11-2005
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Published in : Flying, Airways |
On 9th November 2005, as I answered a question from Karen Lysholm on whether it is possible to fly from London to Sydney, Boeing was at the same time trying to break the world record for the longest non-stop flight. Well, as expected, they did set a new world record by flying the Boeing 777-200LR on the same day from Hong Kong to London, Heathrow.
The plane flew Eastbound (Westbound would have been nearer!) towards London - flying almost a Great Circle route over the North Pacific Ocean, across North America and then the North Atlantic Ocean towards London. It covered 11,664 nautical miles (21,601 kilometers) with a time of 22 hours 42 minutes. This record exceeded the previous one set in 1997 when another Boeing 777-200ER (Malaysia Airlines first Boeing 777 delivery) flew from Seattle to Kuala Lumpur, covering a distance of 10,823 nautical miles (20,044 kilometers)
So, there you are, Karen. The new Boeing 777-200LR has claimed the world*s longest range commercial airliner record. It can connect virtually any two cities around the world. Boeing has chosen to fly the plane from Hong Kong to London by the longer Easterly route rather than the shorter way round to prove this point!
London to Sydney non-stop will be a reality soon :-)!
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