Qantas A380 makes historic direct flight from Australia to London

You might think the time for record-breaking flights is over, with airlines and airports across the world grinding to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic.

But by a strange twist of fate, Qantas will – for a matter of days – be running the first-ever A380 passenger flight between Australia and London.

So how did this come about?

Switcheroo on the kangaroo

Qantas will be suspending all its international flights by the end of March, with its flagship QF1 “Kangaroo Route” from Sydney to London via Singapore making its last departure from Sydney on March 26, reports Executive Traveller.

However, Singapore Changi Airport will be banning transit passengers from March 24, leaving Qantas in a bit of a pickle.

So, in a switcheroo on the Kangaroo Route, Qantas will now be doing a 90-minute fuel stop at Darwin in Australia’s Northern Territory instead, before flying the 16-plus hours on to London.

It’s the first time that Darwin and London will be linked by a direct service – but not the first time Darwin’s been a stop on this prestigious route.

Flying Down Under: Once upon a time, in a more romantic if ultimately slower and less efficient era, high-rolling passengers could make the marathon journey from London to Perth, Australia in a luxury flying boat.

Promenade deck: The trip was an adventure in itself, taking 10 days and 37 stops, leaving plenty of time for in-flight strolling on the promenade deck and pointing at dirty marks on the window.

Time to type: Some used the time to work, much like on long-haul flights today but with a typewriter instead of a tablet.

In-flight entertainment: Others kept their golf game sharp.

Broken journey: The early journeys were in two parts -- Southampton, England, to Darwin, Australia, in a Short C Class flying boat, before transferring to local carrier MacRobertson Miller Airlines (MMA) for the trip to Perth in a puddle-jumping DH-84.

Air con: The larger "state-of-the-art" DH-86 was a later improvement on the Darwin to Perth leg. The twisty air con nozzle didn't work then, either.

Super Constellation: The flying boats were superseded by converted Lancaster bombers and then pressurized four-engine Lockheed Constellations. In 1958, Qantas was the first airline to launch a round-the-world service with the Super Constellation.

Drinking it in: The "Super Connie" cut the four-day traveling time on the "Kangaroo Route" to 54 hours and 30 minutes, which still left enough time for a glass of red in bed.

Chrome Comet: The shiny-winged De Havilland Comet 4 joined the BOAC fleet in September 1958.

Cabin clutter: From the exclusive luxury of the flying boats, the more recognizable cattle class of today was taking shape.

Balancing act: But the high-flying jets offered a much smoother ride, which the airline was very keen to advertise with a series of completely unstaged pictures.

Boeing 707: Australia's Qantas, meanwhile, had gone for the mid-sized Boeing 707.

Air advance: In turn, BOAC ordered Rolls-Royce-powered 707s. The chrome finish was still very much in vogue.

Longer range: BOAC then introduced the Vickers VC-10 on routes to Australia in the 1960s and 70s. As technology improved, the greater range meant stopovers such as Darwin could be dropped.

Jumbo era: The jumbo era began in 1971 with Qantas's first Boeing 747-200. Two stops were still required, though.

Top deck: Qantas was very proud of its First Class Captain Cook lounge on the upper deck, but it didn't last long and was soon replaced by seats.

In 1989, the more powerful and economical engines of Qantas' Boeing 747-400 enabled the airline to introduce one-stop flights between the UK and Australia.

The final link in the chain is Qantas' new Boeing 787 which has shrunk flights to a non-stop 17-hour dash between the UK and Australia. Onboard golf is not allowed.

From 10 days to 15 hours: the evolution of London to Australia flights

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As chance would have it, Darwin was a stop on the original Kangaroo Route in the 1930s, which took 37 days and included 10 stops.

“The return fare was about ￡400 – the equivalent of two years’ minimum wages, making the journey very much one reserved for the rich and famous,” Geoffrey Thomas, editor-in-chief of AirlineRatings, told CNN Travel in 2017.

Darwin falls on the most direct path from Sydney to London, making it ideally positioned for the quick stopover before the 17-hour flight onwards to London.

Qantas’ last fight on the returning QF2 flight from London to Sydney via Darwin will take off March 27, landing the next day.

Goodbye to the superjumbo

Qantas is grounding all 150 of its planes until at least the end of May, including their 12 A380s.

However, with Airbus ceasing production of the superjumbo by 2021, and airlines already retiring those in their fleet, it could well be the last chance for passengers to ride in one of Qantas’ red-tailed A380s, notes the One Mile At A Time aviation website.

Although the double-decker megajet was a consumer favorite, “The 380 was a bad business decision in the first place,” explains Kenneth Button, professor of public policy at George Mason University.

“Boeing had it right when it argued that more passengers wanted direct flights rather than going via large hubs linked by superjumbos and getting to/from the hubs by single-aisle planes – which was what Airbus thought would happen.

“Hence the 787 with medium capacity, fuel economy and long-range (and ability to be used in a freighter context) triumphed,” he tells CNN Travel.

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The Evolution of the Kangaroo Route

07:26 - Source: CNN

Qantas has been involved in a few remarkable aviation moments in recent times. Last November, Flight QF7879 from London to Sydney became the world’s longest passenger flight by a commercial airline both for distance, at 17,800 kilometers (about 11,060 miles), and for duration in the air, at 19 hours and 19 minutes.

While in March 2018, a Qantas jet made the first direct flight from Australia to the UK, a Boeing Dreamliner voyaging from Perth to London.

These Darwin-London flights might not be such legendary aviation moments, but they are another strange twist in what is a very tumultuous time for the industry.

Rob Hodgetts contributed to this report