Qantas’s new ultra long-distance aircraft has landed on Australian soil for the first time on Friday after a 19-hour test flight from France, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight). The specially adapted Airbus A350-1000ULR touched down in Melbourne after performing a flight test designed to push its range capability, according to [The Sydney Morning Herald](https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/qantas-plane-set-to-arrive-in-australia-today-direct-from-france-20260723-p60i3u.html).
Qantas Project Sunrise Test Flight Lands in Melbourne After 19-Hour Journey
The aircraft set off on a nonstop journey from Airbus’ manufacturing facility in Toulouse, France, destined for Melbourne, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight). Air traffic tracking indicated the flight departed Toulouse at 7.33am on Thursday, local time, and landed in Melbourne just over 19 hours later at 10.46am, local time, as reported by [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight). The historic journey covered an almost 17,000km path, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight).
The test flight attracted global attention, with more than 67,000 people following its path on flightradar24.com on Friday morning, making it the most-watched flight globally on Friday, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight).
Inside the Flying Laboratory and Specialized Fuel Systems
Carrying no regular passengers, the aircraft’s cabin was transformed into a flying laboratory packed with five tonnes of testing equipment and 1,000 sensors linked by kilometres of cabling to monitor performance throughout the journey, according to [7news](https://7news.com.au/sunrise/london-to-melbourne-direct-flights-one-step-closer-as-milestone-test-flight-comes-in-for-landing-c-22622169). Seats were fitted with heat-emitting systems to mimic passenger body temperatures to check the performance of air conditioning and cooling systems, as noted by [Executive Traveller](https://www.executivetraveller.com/news/qantas-a350-melbourne).
The flight tested the jet’s specialised fuel system, which includes an additional 20,000-litre rear centre fuel tank that other A350-1000 models do not have, according to [News.com.au](https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/project-sunrise-first-test-flight-from-europe-to-australia-for-qantas-a3501000ulr/news-story/82c9522eb505e49dd1702a2c3ff788bc). This extra fuel tank enables the aircraft to fly ultra long-haul routes of almost 10,000 nautical miles (18,500km) and fly nonstop for up to 22 hours, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight).
The test model was operated by four Airbus flight test pilots and five flight test engineers, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight). The aircraft and crew will stay in Melbourne over the weekend before departing for Toulouse on Monday, with two Qantas pilots joining them on board for the return journey, which Qantas chief technical pilot Alex Passerini told Channel Seven would take 23 hours as crews tested systems from fuel transfer to air conditioning, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight).
Fleet Rollout and Project Sunrise Commercial Plans
Qantas ordered 12 custom-designed A350-1000ULR aircraft from Airbus in May 2022, featuring 238 seats—the lowest seat density of any A350 around the world—designed to give travelers more space, according to [Aerotime](https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/airbus-begins-first-test-flight-qantas-a350-1000ulr-australia-france). The first aircraft in the Qantas livery, named Vega, is scheduled to be delivered in April 2027, according to [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/24/qantas-project-sunrise-airbus-a350-1000ulr-ultra-long-range-france-melbourne-test-flight).
Project Sunrise commercial services are expected to start in October 2027, connecting Australia directly to London and New York, according to [The Sydney Morning Herald](https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/qantas-plane-set-to-arrive-in-australia-today-direct-from-france-20260723-p60i3u.html). Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson announced at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse that the first Project Sunrise route would be Sydney-London, according to [News.com.au](https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/project-sunrise-first-test-flight-from-europe-to-australia-for-qantas-a3501000ulr/news-story/82c9522eb505e49dd1702a2c3ff788bc). While Melbourne is hosting the milestone test flight, the airline has committed the first six of its initial order for 12 A350-1000ULR jets to Sydney-London and Sydney-New York flights, with no current plans to schedule Project Sunrise routes to and from Melbourne, according to [Executive Traveller](https://www.executivetraveller.com/news/qantas-a350-melbourne).
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