Qantas buys new planes to start non-stop flights from Sydney to NYC, London

May 1 (UPI) -- Qantas Airways on Monday announced it has ordered a number of new planes from Airbus, including a dozen A350-1000s to fly non-stop routes between Sydney and New York.

Australia's flag carrier ordered the A350-1000s for its "Project Sunrise" direct flights from Australia to cities including New York and London starting by the end of 2025.

"The A350 and Project Sunrise will make any city just one flight away from Australia," Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement. "It's the last frontier and the final fix for the tyranny of distance."

The planes, which are 25% more fuel efficient than previous generation aircraft, will carry 238 passengers and have a cabin specifically configured for long-haul flights with a so-called well-being zone at its center, Qantas said.

The airline also announced the purchase of 40 A321XLRs and A220 aircraft for its domestic fleet.

Qantas purchased the jets for its domestic Project Winton to replace its retiring Boeing 737s and 717s, with the first of the aircraft to begin arriving in late 2023.

Joyce said the jets will become "the backbone" of Qantas' domestic service for the next two decades and will make new direct routes possible.

"These newer aircraft and engines will reduce emissions by at least 15% if running on fossil fuels and significantly better when run on sustainable aviation fuel," he said. "This order brings us closer to our commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050."

"We have come through the other side of the pandemic a structurally different company," he added. "Our domestic market share is higher and the demand for direct international flights is even stronger than it was before COVID."

The purchase, Qantas said, will create more than 1,000 jobs.

Tony Lucas, president of the Australian and International Pilots Association trade union, said the purchase was "a huge moment of renewal for the aviation industry," Australia's ABC reported.

She also said, however, that the new long-haul flights will present new challenges.

"Given that no one's ever operated these sort of flights before, that will be a learning experience for both Qantas and us as pilots, and we expect that the Civil Aviation Safety Authority will be involved in that process as well," she said.