Qantas completed the first direct flight between Perth and London on 25^th March, marking the start of the only direct air link between Australia and Europe. The flight is operated by a Boeing 787-9.

Flight QF9, carrying more than 200 passengers and 16 crew, pushed back just before 7pm on Saturday 24^th March and landed in London just after 5am (local time) the following day. QF9 is operated by four pilots across the 17-hour journey, with one or two pilots resting at any one time.

The daily QF9 begins in Melbourne, flying to Perth before then flying non-stop to London. Qantas has adjusted the timing of some domestic services into Perth so that passengers from Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane can join the flight to London. At 14,498km, QF9 is the third longest commercial flight currently in operation. It is the world’s longest Dreamliner flight.

The inaugural flight coincided with the opening of the airline’s new Perth International Transit Lounge featuring special lighting designed to reduce jetlag, as well as pre-flight stretching classes, and relocating all of the airline’s domestic and international flights into a single terminal at Perth Airport for faster, smoother connections.

Qantas chose its newest 787, ‘Emily’, to operate the inaugural service, which features a livery by Balarinji based on the artwork Yam Dreaming by Indigenous artist Emily Kame Kngwarreye.

Menus for the flights between Perth and London have been designed to maintain hydration, aid sleep and reduce jetlag and include poke bowls as well as home style comfort food.