In November 2025, Stephen Asbury set out to circle the globe with a singular goal in mind: to experience the longest commercial flight in the world. In order to make the epic journey from Singapore to New York on Singapore Airlines’ unique Airbus A350-900ULRs, he would undertake a five-flight round-the-world journey in 39 hours and 16 minutes. On his four-day quest, Asbury averaged a speed of 521 miles per hour while circling the globe.

Mr. Asbury is an aficionado of air travel who has logged a number of other unique itineraries under his belt, such as the world’s shortest commercial flight from Westray to Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands. He has also made the 7,503 nautical mile journey from Sydney, Australia, to Los Angeles, USA.

His mission to fly Singapore Airlines’ SQ24 service would add five more flights to his logbook, bringing the total to 1,207. The flight aboard the A350-900ULR marked the 93rd aircraft type that he had flown aboard as well. To complete the 20,499-mile journey, Asbury crossed through 24 time zones on five flight legs, which he booked himself, and saved more than half the price of a travel agency quote, thanks to Skyscanner.

Taking Off With Lufthansa

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The first leg of this epic journey started with a relatively mundane hop across the English Channel to Frankfurt (FRA), Germany, with a one-hour and 23-minute flight on an Airbus A320-200. Lufthansa flight 945 departed the new Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport (MAN), which was a first for Asbury, setting the right tone for the rest of the trip. The flight was on time and uneventful, and this departure marked the 130th time that he had flown aboard the Airbus A320, the planemaker’s best-selling aircraft.

The first leg of this round-the-world adventure was just 518 nautical miles, or a little over 5% of the distance that SQ23/SQ24 covers every time it operates. On Asbury’s mission to complete the longest commercial flight in the world, and longest in history, this would be the only A320 that he would step aboard. That is a particularly impressive side note as the narrowbody family became the best-selling airliner in history when it surpassed the Boeing 737 last fall.

With more than 12,000 jets delivered and going strong, they have become the most common airframe on the ramp at any given airport around the world. The latest MAX iteration of their rival, the Boeing 737 family, has been troubled since its debut, with accidents in 2018 and 2019 that included almost 350 fatalities. However, in 2026, Boeing appears to be back on track with quality and safety and is aiming to ramp up production, which may yet see it reclaim the throne.

The Queen Goes To Singapore

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Asbury is a Boeing 747 fan, much like many avgeeks, so this leg of the five-part circumnavigation series was also an exciting installment. Lufthansa is one of the few operators left in the world that still fly the 747, and, on flight LH780, he was aboard one of the airline’s older models, a 747-400 bearing the registration D-ABVU. The journey from Frankfurt to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) would take over 12 hours and cover an impressive 6,394 nautical miles.

Asbury has logged 111 flights aboard 747s, and this occasion marked his 104th departure on a 747-400. The number of these prolific and iconic double-decker widebody jetliners is dwindling as most of the airworthy examples are now cargo freighters, and very few passenger-configured examples remain in service. Lufthansa has the largest number, with eight 747-400s still flying and 19 examples of the newer 747-8 on the flight line.

Asbury enjoyed his time in the Senator Lounge at Frankfurt airport thanks to his Miles & More Silver membership. These lounges are located in Terminal 1 (Areas A, B, and Z) and offer a more upscale experience than the typical business class lounges. Asbury was able to upgrade his landside experience thanks to loyalty rewards.

Unfortunately, the ‘Queen of the Skies,’ as the 747 is called, is starting to show its age, and the experience aboard the 747 is not quite as glamorous as it once was. However, when Asbury sat down in Singapore, he was able to take a quick trip on the Metro to his hotel and then enjoy the city as he prepared for the next, and longest leg. He had the opportunity to walk through some of the F1 Street circuit as he meandered through Singapore’s famously beautiful city streets.

SQ24: The Marathon Mission

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After an evening out in Singapore, Asbury woke up the next day and returned directly to the airport, where he spent the morning in the lounge as he awaited the rare Airbus jet that would carry him halfway around the world. The chariot that carried Asbury to New York’s JFK Airport was an A350-900ULR registered as 9V-SGG, one of only seven in the world. Singapore Airlines is the only owner and operator of the rare variant, and it collaborated with Airbus to make it solely to run these flights.

Famous for its high quality of service, the airline configures these jets with all premium seats. On the ultra-long-haul flights that Singapore Airlines operates with the A350-900ULR, it is unique because it features only two cabins: business class and premium economy. There are no standard economy seats on this aircraft. Asbury chose to book premium economy for his 17-hour and 14-minute journey to the far side of the world.

Departing from Changi Airport, the aircraft reached the International Date Line somewhere around the 10 to 11-hour mark. After crossing this line of demarcation in the middle of the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, Asbury essentially traveled back in time, sliding 24 time zones to the left as the jet cruised east toward the US, where his destination lay over the horizon. Upon touchdown in New York, he had almost checked the box for every time zone on the planet since leaving home.

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Crossing The Pond

Credit: Stephen Asbury

After stepping off the world’s longest flight, Asbury’s next leg was a transatlantic journey in the form of a (comparatively) short seven-hour and 55-minute hop across the ‘pond’ from New York to Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) in Paris, France. Asbury chose to fly Air France and was once again ushered aboard an Airbus A350-900, although this one was not the rare ultra-long range variant. He remarked that it was such a shiny, new jetliner that it still had that “new car smell,” so to speak.

Arriving in Paris, Asbury now encountered a marathon challenge that was a little less enjoyable than his previous endeavors on this globetrotting adventure. He was left with no choice but to endure a 7-hour layover at CDG, and unfortunately, his silver Miles & More loyalty membership did not gain him entry to any of the lounges in the T2E terminal area. To add insult to injury, his aircraft was late due to a delay on its previous leg.

Asbury enjoyed a brisk one-hour flight back to Manchester aboard the Air France A220-300 and began reflecting on his journey, but also almost immediately planning his next airborne adventure. After all, Airbus and Qantas joint ‘Project Sunrise’ initiative will convert an A350-1000 to a ultra long range variant like Singapore Airlines’ A350-900ULRs. This tantalizing program is nearing its completion, and service from Sydney (SYD), Australia, to New York is expected to begin in early 2027.

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The Longest Air Bridge

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The story of SQ23 and SQ24 is one of endurance, engineering, and a battle with fuel costs, and these flights represent the current crown jewel of Singapore Airlines’ global network. The carrier first pioneered nonstop service to the New York area in June 2004, but to Newark (EWR) rather than JFK, under the flight numbers SQ21/22. The route was flown by the Airbus A340-500, a four-engine aircraft specifically designed for ultra-long-haul.

Holding the title for the ‘World’s Longest Flight’ is a prestigious branding tool that further enhances the carrier’s reputation for luxurious service and flying excellence, but, in 2013, the airline was forced to cancel the route. The A340-500 was a ‘gas-guzzler,’ and as fuel prices rose, the 19-hour journey became financially unviable despite high ticket prices and an all-business-class configuration. However, it resumed non-stop flights to Newark after taking delivery of the A350-900ULR in 2018.

While the pandemic briefly halted the Newark route, Singapore Airlines used the downtime to shift its primary New York operations to JFK in 2020. This shift made SQ23/24 the longest scheduled commercial flight in the world, covering approximately 9,537 miles (15,349 km) with a flight time of up to 19 hours. The non-stop route saves business travelers four or five hours compared to stopover flights via Europe or the West Coast, allowing the carrier to enjoy high demand even with a pricey airfare.