Daily News C1 · Advanced 4 practice tests

Qantas’s New York-to-Sydney ‘Project Sunrise’ Flights to Take Off in 2028

2 min read 321 words Published Sep 23, 2026

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Intro

Qantas Airways has announced that its planned direct flights between New York and Sydney will begin in 2028 as part of its Project Sunrise program.

Vocabulary

Word	Part of speech	Meaning	Example
broader adjective	adjective	Meaning: more extensive in scope, range, or significance	Example: The committee adopted a broader interpretation of the evidence.
exceptionally adverb	adverb	Meaning: to an unusually high or extreme degree	Example: The exceptionally demanding schedule required careful preparation.
introduce verb	verb	Meaning: to launch or bring a new service, system, or idea into use	Example: The company plans to introduce a more efficient booking system.
precede verb	verb	Meaning: to happen or exist before something else	Example: A short briefing will precede the formal negotiations.
simultaneous adjective	adjective	Meaning: occurring at the same time	Example: The two announcements were simultaneous, although they concerned different markets.
timetable noun	noun	Meaning: a planned schedule indicating when events or activities should occur	Example: The revised timetable allows additional time for safety checks.
durations noun	noun	Meaning: lengths of time during which events or activities continue	Example: The study compared the durations of several intensive training programs.

The story

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Qantas Airways has said its planned direct flights between New York and Sydney will begin in 2028, as part of the airline’s Project Sunrise program. The proposed service is expected to last 18 hours, according to the announcement. The statement places the route within a broader plan for exceptionally long direct connections.

The New York-to-Sydney route is linked to another direct service that Qantas says it intends to introduce first. The airline said the New York-to-Sydney flights would come several months after its direct flights between Sydney and London begin operating. Those flights are expected to take 22 hours. The stated sequence means the London service would precede the New York route, while both remain part of Project Sunrise.

The announcement does not describe the two routes as simultaneous launches. Instead, it sets out an order: Sydney-to-London flights would start first, and the New York-to-Sydney service would follow by several months. Qantas has placed the latter route on a timetable leading to 2028, while tying its start to the earlier London operation. This gives the plan a clear internal sequence, even though the source statement provides no further operational detail.

For travelers, the proposal would establish a direct connection between New York and Sydney, with a stated journey time of 18 hours. The related Sydney-to-London service would represent an even longer direct journey at 22 hours. These durations are central to the announcement because they indicate the scale of the routes Qantas is associating with Project Sunrise. The information, however, concerns planned services rather than flights already in operation.

For now, Qantas’s statement establishes the intended timing and relationship between the routes. The New York-to-Sydney flights are planned for 2028 and would come several months after the Sydney-to-London flights begin. The announcement therefore frames Project Sunrise as a sequence of future long-distance connections: one 22-hour route first, followed later by an 18-hour route. Further details about the services are not included in the supplied source summary.

Warm-up questions

What practical and psychological challenges might arise during an 18-hour direct flight?
Why might an airline launch two exceptionally long routes in a deliberate sequence?

Comprehension questions

What is the planned duration of the New York-to-Sydney service?
Which route is intended to begin first?
How does the announcement characterize the relationship between the launches?
What limitation does the supplied source acknowledge?
Why are the stated journey times significant?

Opinion questions

Would an 18-hour direct flight be preferable to a shorter journey involving a connection? Explain your reasoning.
Does launching the London route before the New York route seem strategically sensible? Why or why not?

Further discussion

What operational, commercial, or human factors would Qantas need to address before launching these services?
How might ultra-long-haul routes reshape ideas about distance, convenience, and airline competition?