Two years back, I got to experience the world’s lengthiest flight, Singapore Airlines’ course in between Singapore and New York City. It was a large thing to go across off my AvGeek to-do list and the experience itself was a blast Ever since I’ve been questioning how I could ever before cover that flight. Ultimately, there was just one way: flying the course in the contrary instructions (which has a longer ordinary time up) and in even more design. After biding my time for a while and snagging a lucky booking, I got the chance.
When I flew from Singapore to New York City in 2023, a rigid tailwind helped us make blast: under 17 hours aloft. Traveling the return path to Singapore would certainly be a full two hours longer. Even for an AvGeek, the idea of over 19 hours onboard a single flight was frightening. I was truthfully stressed that partway with this marathon of a trip, the magic would certainly subside and I would certainly get tired.
Well, I was completely incorrect about that. It was a LONG trip to ensure. But between the comfy seat, attractive sights, broad range of enjoyment choices, and signature Singapore service, it was a blast from beginning to end. I additionally got to discover the unique functions that make these ultra-long-haul solutions tolerable (and even enjoyable!) for passengers onboard.
Continue reading for the full inside story on this one-of-a-kind path. We really hope the walkthrough will certainly aid you make a decision whether a trip this lengthy deserves your time.
Prior to I start, shout out to an unique story from the AirlineReporter archives. Back in 2013 David Parker Brown flew the previous iteration of the Singapore-NYC route, ran at that time by an Airbus A 340 – 500 If you’re seeking a historic contrast (or maybe just for a little AvGeek nostalgia) check out that traditional tale.
On the ground at New york city JFK
Singapore Airlines presently runs out of Terminal 4 at JFK. The airline doesn’t operate its own lounge here. Biz course and other qualifying passengers could use the PrimeClass agreement lounge, the Air India Lounge, or demand a $ 50 meal coupon. There’s likewise an AMEX Centurion Lounge and Chase Sapphire Lounge in the exact same terminal for any individual with the appropriate bank card perks.
For long-haul flights, I’m utilized to boarding around an hour before separation time. However because Singapore’s A 350 – 900 ULRs are in a low-density configuration, boarding began just 30 minutes pre-departure. Individuals still aligned early to board, which was funny given that they were about to be confined to the cabin for almost a complete day.
From the outdoors, the airplane looked like a routine A 350, but on the inside she was an absolutely different pet. We’ll inform you why.
An one-of-a-kind subfleet
Singapore operates a super-specialized subfleet of just nine A 350 – 900 ULRs. The last 3 letters mean ultra-long array. With its changed fuel system the ULR uses a crazy range of approximately 9, 700 nautical miles and capacity to deal with 20 undisturbed hours of trip.
An additional key difference in between Singapore’s ULRs and its non-ULR equivalents is the cabin layout. Singapore didn’t even trouble consisting of an economy class cabin on its ULRs. That was to minimize weight, yet also because most individuals wouldn’t wish to spend 18 + hours in an economic climate seat. There are two substantial business course cabins occupying the front two-thirds of the aircraft, offering a remarkable 67 total seats. In the back third of the airplane there’s a costs economy cabin with 94 seats in a 2 – 4 – 2 configuration. In total amount, the airplane carries simply 161 travelers, compared to 253 – 303 passengers on the numerous setups of Singapore’s non-ULR A 350 – 900 s.
Fulfill the seat
After stepping onboard, I headed into the forward organization course cabin and analyzed my home for the following 20 hours. The seat is the same as on Singapore’s requirement A 350 s. It’s a distinctive style, with lots of purple and golden accents.
The cabin format is 1 – 2 – 1 throughout. Seats in the middle have a sliding privacy divider panel in between them.
I had selected a window seat on the left side.
The seat itself was impressively vast. The side of the seat room blocked one of my home windows, yet I had an excellent view through the other one.
Singapore does not offer a collection style item in business course (yet) yet the divider panels between seats still do provide some privacy.
The console beside the seat came equipped with a feature package, menu, and a couple of various other goodies.
Beside each headrest was an analysis light, power electrical outlet, and tiny storage space area.
At the front of each seat area there was a huge display, a small ledge for holding a drink, and one more little storage space area with a door.
As I got cleared up in the purser came over to introduce himself. I was then supplied a selection of beverages, though the pre-departure service was restricted to water and juice.
It was a late-night departure. The New York City location was sparkling in the evening and my eyes remained glued to the window for the whole climb along the length of Long Island.
On a side note, I had actually anticipated the globe’s longest trip to have a crazy lengthy launch roll. However we took off hardly halfway into the 12, 079 -foot runway 22 R– and with just a nine-knot headwind. Pretty good efficiency for an aircraft presumably sucked to the border with fuel.
Solution gets going
After takeoff the team occurred with nuts and a drink to tide us over while they prepped the supper service.
This was the food selection for the first dish:
Singapore’s Schedule the Cook option lets you pre-select a meal before the flight.
Right here’s a consider the a glass of wine checklist for the trip:
And below are several of the other beverages they offered:
Singapore runs some cool providing collaborations for its long-haul trips. One is with AeroFarms, an indoor upright farming company. The salad we began with featured their eco-friendlies.
The sea bass entree was best.
And a mango + interest fruit berry cremeux rounded out a fantastic dish.
As usual, the Singapore Airlines steward were brightened, aggressive, and made the hard work appearance simple.
Working out in for the LONG haul
Singapore does inflight services a little bit in a different way than the majority of various other airline companies do. Rather than a heavily equipped amenity package for each and every traveler, they use specific things in the bathrooms.
The business class cabin had four washrooms. 4 lavs between 67 guests is a rather limited proportion. There were times close to mealtimes and landing where there was at the very least a short line for them.
For this flight they did additionally use a light amenity package at each seat, with just a few items, together with some socks + slippers + eye masks.
Singapore’s A 350 seats go fully level, yet not in the typical means. Instead of the seat flattening out right into a bed under a passenger’s control, the whole seat flips forward to open up the bed. That process calls for a flight attendant’s participation.
It’s a polarizing design choice. On one hand, you don’t have as much adaptability to enter and leave fully-flat mode. On the other hand, Singapore’s design offers a firm encouraging material for seat mode however a different softer bed surface area in sleep mode. I definitely appreciated the difference.
In this seat style the footwell in bed setting is off sideways and a bit cramped, though at upper body degree the bed is way larger than average.
Many thanks to the A 350’s cabin design, and additionally because I was being in the forward-most cabin, it was an uncommonly peaceful experience. Phone audio meters might not be one of the most exact, however I was amazed that mine assessed the ambient noise degree at 77 decibels. That’s dramatically quieter than numerous various other aircraft kinds.
In between the soft surface, exceptional bed linen, and silent ride, I obtained some fantastic rest on this flight.
Usually I try to sleep the bare minimum required when I’m on a treat-myself fancy flight. Yet with a virtually 19 -hour trip time I didn’t skimp on rest. I got up as we were going across right into Turkey. It was ten complete hours after takeoff … and we were barely midway through the flight. Crazy!
While I was sleeping the sun had come up outside.
Just as I was wondering what to do with all the remaining trip time, the staff started a midflight meal solution.
I’ll confess the food selection choice really felt a bit odd. It was a meal being offered at around 9 AM in New york city time. I would certainly have assumed most travelers would certainly be food craving breakfast. Yet the recipes were more like a 2nd dinner. Then again, it’s unfair to be too Western-centric in my presumptions concerning meals since US-style eggy and sugary morning meals aren’t the standard in most areas.
What mattered most was that it was one more really tasty dish. And likewise simple on the eyes, with wonderful discussion and plating. My main dish (Moroccan smoked lamb chops) was one more cooking partnership, this time with The golden state’s Golden Door medical spa and wellness retreat.
I took my time consuming (I imply, what else was I going to do?) and by the time treat rolled around the sunlight was starting to establish. That noted the 2nd nighttime I experienced during this trip. Due to the flight length and the time area difference, this flight lands 2 (!!) days after it removes.
Passing the time
Having actually consumed and slept to my heart’s web content, I transformed some interest to the enjoyment system. The screen dimension was impressive. Weirdly, it had not been a touch display. Yet you might at least attach your phone to the system to utilize it as a remote, along with the wired physical remote beside the seat.
The headphones they offered were respectable, though the silent cabin also implied there was less history nose to block in general.
There was limitless free of charge Wi-Fi, which was a significant plus.
The speeds were sensibly helpful for inflight net, though the protection cut out a few times throughout the lengthy route.
Overall, Singapore supplies a terrific amusement system and content library. There were only two IFE drawbacks. One was that there were a great deal of advertisements. The other was that there weren’t any outside camera sights. On the AvGeek bright side, the relocating map was excellent: both high-res and interactive. Checking out the map mid-flight and discovering all the nations we would certainly flown over, it truly sank in how remarkably long this flight was.
Singapore’s A 350 s offer a few of one of the most attractive cabin illumination I’ve ever seen. The seat itself had several lights you might regulate to get exactly the ambiance you desired.
Unsurprisingly, the crew maintained the cabin dark for the majority of the trip to allow people to sleep as long as they desired.
However, that implied that I could not actually watch out of the window much– at least not without swamping the cabin with a ton of light and waking people up.
It had not been a trouble though, since I had plenty of web content on the IFE system to stay amused. I additionally wasted time with some coffee and a pre-arrival bowl of noodles.
For the 2nd fifty percent of the trip the crew members mostly kept to the galleys however were responsive when I required them.
Also the world’s longest flight eventually finishes
It was practically a shock when the team introduced we will start our descent. I took advantage of the heads-up-display choice on the inflight map as we made our strategy.
We got a look at the usual expanse of waiting ships throughout the final descent right into Changi.
Here’s a window-seat view of the descent and landing:
And with that, our marathon of a trip came to an end.
Sizing up the globe’s lengthiest trip
To start, this trip would have been worth it for the novelty element alone. I imply seriously, just have a look at just how much ground we covered:
So from an AvGeek perspective this trip is well worth it. Yet if you’re evaluating whether to drop some serious cash/miles/points on this trip you probably respect more than just the course length. The traveler experience matters. So just how does Singapore fairly fare there? Well, it’s a tall order to keep passengers happy on a flight this long. But I need to say Singapore Airlines did a remarkable work with this ultra-long-haul solution.
The positives:
— Singapore is recognized for providing some of the best solution in the sky. My trip’s team was on their A-game and they were the solitary most positive component of the experience.
— In regards to the standard dimensions the seat is kindly spacious.
— The inflight eating was remarkable, both in regards to flavor and presentation. The distinct provider collaborations (like AeroFarms for the salads or the Golden Door meal) were a fun spin. Singapore’s excellent white wine and coffee checklist should have certain appreciation.
— The IFE display was substantial, and the collection of material was superb.
— The A 350 is an excellent system for this ultra-long-haul solution, compared to the noisier fuel-guzzling A 340 – 500 that used to operate the NYC-SIN route. The relatively peaceful cabin volume, soothing lighting, and improved moisture and pressurization are particularly valuable on ultra-long-haul flights.
If I needed to indicate a couple of little downsides:
— Singapore’s long-haul biz class seats are falling further and additionally behind the reducing side. At the very least the airline is aware of this, and recently they dropped hints regarding a significant approaching seat redesign. With their next generation of seats, I would not be stunned if Singapore joints the collection elite.
— Not having the capacity to take the seat between upright and fully-flat settings was awkward.
— Just as good as the food was, it was weird to not have a morning meal option for a full-day flight.
— The reduced lavatory-to-passenger ratio suggested periodically needing to wait. A minor aggravation, yet a nuisance however.
— What does an AvGeek need to do to obtain exterior camera sights around here??
As constantly, if any of you have tried this trip out yourself (or aspire to!) and have thoughts, share them in the remarks area listed below.
Logistical note: Singapore has numerous day-to-day trips into and out of the NYC location. As a result of all of that ability there are often great deals on their ultra-long-haul trips with miles or cash. I scheduled this trip with miles.
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