Bye-bye！A 19-hour journey — Singapore Airlines to retire its longest flight in November

▲ The A340 aircraft that completed the world’s longest non-stop flight. (Photo / via Wikimedia Commons)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Singapore–New York, the world’s longest non-stop flight, will be discontinued next month. Due to factors such as rising fuel prices and the global economy, Singapore Airlines has announced that this 19-hour route will be retired from service, along with the Airbus A340 aircraft that operated the longest flight.

Tickets for the Singapore Airlines non-stop Singapore–New York flight were not cheap. According to ETtoday Eastday Travel Cloud reporters who inquired with the airline, fares varied depending on seat availability. For business class, the current highest round-trip fare is SGD 12,542.8, equivalent to NT$298,268, approaching NT$300,000.

In the future, passengers will fly from Singapore to Frankfurt, Germany, then transfer to New York. While the fare will be about NT$60,000 cheaper than before, the travel time will increase by five hours. According to a Bloomberg report, rising oil prices and the global economic climate were the main reasons for ending this route. The global downturn led to reduced business travel from Wall Street, and oil prices have tripled over the past decade, making the route unprofitable.

The Singapore–New York route spans 16,700 kilometers and required four pilots to share the 19-hour flying time. Launched in 2004, the Singapore Airlines Singapore–New York route set the record for the world’s longest non-stop flight.