SIA launches the world's longest commercial flight
Singapore Airlines (SIA) is launching the world's longest commercial flight on Monday with the opening of its first non-stop service on the transpolar route between New York and Singapore.
The distance between Singapore Changi and New York Newark airports of close to 9,000 nautical miles (16,600kms) will take an average of 18 hours to complete. The return flight from Newark, which departs at 23.00 local time arrives in Singapore two days later at 05.35.
The end of the Cold War, which opened the way for new transpolar routes overflying Russia, along with the development of ultra long-haul aircraft, has created new opportunities for non-stop services between Asia and North America.
Both SIA's non-stop service to New York and its first non-stop service to Los Angeles, which started in February, use the four-engined Airbus A340-500. The aircraft is already being exploited by Emirates, the fast-growing Middle East carrier, to open new non-stop services to Australia from its Dubai hub.
The Singapore/New York route will use the full range of the Airbus aircraft.
The length of the flight has led SIA to design the route as a premium two-class service with business-class and executive economy cabins only and a reduction in the number of seats. There is no first class and no economy section.
With increasing concern about the potential health risks of long flights in cramped conditions, the aim was to make a much more spacious cabin with room for passengers to move around during the flight.
Whereas Airbus markets the A340-500 with 313 seats in a three-class configuration, SIA has designed the aircraft with only 181 seats including 64 in business class. It has included so-called passenger corners in both cabins, that offer passengers a place to stretch out or socialise with drinks and snacks available.
There is also a bunk area for use by the 14-strong cabin crew in rest periods.
The non-stop service will save passengers around four hours in travel time, and SIA is discontinuing one of its New York services which had previously included a stop-over in Amsterdam. It is maintaining its other New York service via Frankfurt.
新航推出全球最长航线
新加坡航空(Singapore Airlines)周一即将推出纽约与新加坡间的直飞航线，这条跨越北极的航线中途不作停靠，它也将是世界上航程最长的商业航线。
新加坡樟宜机场与纽约纽瓦克机场的距离接近9000海里(合1.66万公里)，全程需要平均18个小时才能飞完。从纽瓦克机场出发的返程航班将于当地时间23点起飞，两天后的5点35分抵达新加坡。
冷战的结束打通了经过俄罗斯领空并飞跃北极的新航线，再加上超远程飞机的发展，这都为亚洲和北美洲间的直飞服务创造了新机会。
新加坡航空至纽约的直飞航线及该公司在2月开通的第一条直飞洛杉矶的航线，都是使用带四个引擎的空客(Airbus)A340-500飞机。快速发展的中东航空公司阿联酋航空(Emirates)也竭力使用这种飞机，开通了该国迪拜至澳大利亚的直飞航线。
新加坡/纽约航线将用足该空客飞机的全部机能。
鉴于航线的长度，新加坡航空公司将这一航班设计成两个等级的优质服务，即商务舱和经理级经济舱，从而减少了座位的数量。该航班不设头等舱和经济舱。
由于外界越来越担心处于狭窄空间中的长时间飞行可能给健康带来风险，新航的这一设计旨在创造出更大的舱内空间，以方便乘客在飞行期间来回走动。
空客公司向市场推出的A340-500型飞机有3个等级、313个座位，但新加坡航空公司将飞机改装后，将只有181个座位，其中64个在商务舱内。在商务舱和经理级经济舱都设有所谓的“乘客角”(passenger corner)，乘客可以在这里舒展四肢，或者喝点饮料，吃点东西，进行交谈。
机上还设有一个卧铺区域，可供14人之多的机组乘员在休息期间使用。
该直飞航线将为乘客节约4个小时左右的旅行时间，同时新加坡航空公司将中断它之前飞往纽约的一个航线，该航线中途经停阿姆斯特丹。但另一个经停法兰克福、飞往纽约的航线仍然继续运行。
