A new flight is set to become the longest non-stop journey in the world from next year. The record for the longest nonstop flight is currently held by Singapore Airlines, taking 19 hours to travel from Singapore to New York.

Covering 10,573 miles, the route has been dubbed "the final frontier of long-haul travel" by Qantas.

Travel expert Simon Calder has shed further light on the flight after paying a visit to the home of Airbus, the manufacturer building the plane.

He said of the plane: "This is a specially modified Airbus A350 Twin Jet that is being built for Qantas so they can, in October 2027, fly you nonstop from London Heathrow 10, 573 miles to Sydney.

"It is going to take a long time, over 20 hours in the air. But, achieving something no airline has done before."

While most passengers travelling to Australia typically break their journey with a stopover in the Middle East, there remains considerable demand for a direct long-haul option.

He added: "On top of that, there's lots of passengers that do not want the faff of changing planes in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai or Abu Dhabi along the way. They just want to get there, and Qantas believes they will be able to sell those seats."

Simon explained on his Travel Expert podcast that he asked Qantas whether rising fuel costs would impact the flight.

Given the flight's duration, Qantas is making modifications to the aircraft to enhance passenger comfort.

Capacity will be reduced to 238 travellers, which Simon noted is nearly 100 fewer than British Airways and Virgin Atlantic accommodate on identical aircraft.

The first record-breaking service almost followed a different path, as it was initially scheduled to launch from New York instead of London. New York will receive its own non-stop connection, with the route requiring marginally less flying time.