The 20 Longest Nonstop Flights in the World
You know what the worst thing you can ask a flight attendant is? "How much longer?!" Not surprisingly, they like it even less than your dad did, except they can't threaten to turn the plane around and go home.
But there are some flights that seem so long -- like, an-entire-effing-day-of-your-life long -- that even the most frequent of flyers can't always hack it. If you thought your long haul from Miami to Seattle seemed interminable, it pales in comparison to the world's 20 longest nonstop flights, ranked here by mileage.
20. New York, New York (JFK) -- Johannesburg, South Africa
South African 204
Aircraft: A340-300
Duration: 14 hours, 57 minutes
Distance: 7,982 miles
From November to March, the return flight is still a one-stop through Dakar, in case you were wondering how to get that souvenir Dakar Rally T-shirt without actually going to the race.
19. New York, New York (JFK) -- Guangzhou, China
China Southern 300
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300
Duration: 14 hours 17 minutes
Distance: 7,998 miles
Never heard of Guangzhou? Oh, it’s just a little city of ELEVEN MILLION PEOPLE that's described by some as "a suburb of Shanghai." Yeah. Eat that, Orange County.
18. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
Etihad 161
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Duration: 14 hours, 10 minutes
Distance: 8,068 miles
What Abu Dhabians who take this flight don’t realize is that they may spend another 14 hours at the TGI Friday's in Terminal C when their connection is canceled due to "weather issues."
17. Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
Emirates 221
Aircraft: A380-800
Duration: 15 hours, 17 minutes
Distance: 8,036 miles
Oh, EVERYTHING is bigger in Texas? That’s cool. Perhaps you haven’t heard of a little building called the Burj Khalifa.
16. Doha, Qatar -- Houston, Texas
Qatar 713
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Duration: 15 hours, 47 minutes
Distance: 8,045 miles
You’d be surprised how much people who don’t speak the same language can talk about oil for 16 hours; proving once again that the world's universal language is... money.
15. Newark, New Jersey -- Hong Kong, China
United 179
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Duration: 15 hours, 38 minutes
Distance: 8,062 miles
Somehow it's six fewer miles to fly to Hong Kong from Newark than from JFK, but takes an hour longer. Huh.
14. New York, New York (JFK) -- Hong Kong, China
Cathay Pacific 831
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300
Duration: 14 hours, 39 minutes
Distance: 8,068 miles
Say you're sick of New York City -- the tall buildings, the foul smells, the wall-to-wall people -- and you want to get as far away as you can without having to change planes. Well, this is your winner. Except once you arrive, you’re in a city full of taller buildings, worse smells, and even more people.
13. Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- San Francisco, California
Emirates 225
Aircraft: A380-800
Duration: 15 hours, 37 minutes
Distance: 8,099 miles
Spending 15 hours on a plane isn’t so bad when you’re on an airline with food that actually tastes good (no, really, like, it’s won awards).
12. Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas -- Hong Kong, China
American Airlines 125
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300
Duration: 15 hours, eight minutes
Distance: 8,119 miles
If you ever find yourself on a date with a girl who's not your girlfriend and see a guy who looks a liiiiiittle too much like Joey Greco lurking in the shadows, here's a tip: Hong Kong is very hard to navigate in a white Econoline van.
11. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- San Francisco, California
Etihad 183
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300
Duration: 15 hours, 13 minutes
Distance: 8,154 miles
Since SF isn't really in the oil business, and dudes from the UAE get plenty of sun at home, we're not entirely sure why they need a fast way to get to... ooooooooooh, right, cable cars. Duh.
10. Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Houston, Texas
Emirates 211
Aircraft: A380-800
Duration: 16 hours, 19 minutes
Distance: 8,164 miles
Since the inception of this flight, men all over the UAE have strangely started referring to each other as "you bastards!"
9. Doha, Qatar -- Los Angeles, California
Qatar 173
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200 LR
Duration: 16 hours, 15 minutes
Distance: 8,306 miles
For Latin American futbol fans looking for a quick, 16-hour jaunt to the World Cup in 2022, this will be a godsend. Until then, an excellent way for Qataris to learn how NOT to handle sprawl.
8. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia -- Los Angeles, California
Saudia 41
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300
Duration: 15 hours, 56 minutes
Distance: 8,329 miles
For frequent-flyer-status-obsessed Saudis, a fun way to make the world's largest mileage run would be to connect from here to Melbourne.
7. Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Los Angeles, California
Emirates 215
Aircraft: A380-800
Duration: 15 hours
Distance: 8,335 miles
If you’re hanging around LA on a Friday afternoon and get in the mood for a desert getaway, this flight will actually take less time than driving to Vegas.
6. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- Los Angeles, California
Etihad 171
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Duration: 15 hours, 39 minutes
Distance: 8,387 miles
If this flight had existed in the '80s, it would have been way easier for Garfield to get Nermal out of the house.
5. San Francisco, California -- Singapore
United 1/Singapore 31
Aircraft: Boeing 787-200 LR/Airbus 350/900
Duration: 17 hours, 15 minutes
Distance: 8,446 miles
If you love San Francisco's high prices and dense population of fantastic Asian food, but find yourself thinking, "This place could really use a hearty dose of humidity!" you can get to your dream city in a little over 17 hours.
4. Johannesburg, South Africa -- Atlanta, Georgia
Delta 201
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200
Duration: 16 hours, 35 minutes
Distance: 8,449 miles
Hey! That's a long-ass flight.
3. Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas -- Sydney, Australia
Qantas Flight 8
Aircraft: A380-800
Duration: 16 Hours
Distance: 8,589 miles
Imagine spending 16 hours in a middle seat between a guy with a Texas accent and a guy with an Aussie accent, the airplane equivalent of listening to a mash-up of Mozart and Skrillex.
2. Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Auckland, New Zealand
Emirates 449
Aircraft: Airbus 380-800
Duration: 16 hours, five minutes
Distance: 8,824 miles
After a whole lotta sand dunes and futuristic architecture, some nice, green fjords seem like a welcome change. Also, plenty of hiking to do once you land to get the blood flowing back into your legs.
1. Doha, Qatar -- Auckland, New Zealand
Qatar 921
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200 LR
Duration: 16 hours, 10 minutes
Distance: 9,032 miles
In the never-ending pissing contest that is development in the gulf states, Qatar just couldn't let the UAE claim the top spot. So here we have the world's longest flight -- for now anyway -- the only one in the world to top 9,000 miles.
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Matt Meltzer is a contributing writer at Thrillist. Follow him on Instagram @meltrez1.