Guinness on Hand to Document Longest Commercial Flight

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

A Boeing Co. jet arrived in London from Hong Kong on Thursday, breaking the record for the longest nonstop flight by a commercial jet.

The 777-200LR Worldliner — one of Boeing’s newest planes — touched down shortly after 1 p.m. (8 a.m. EST) at London’s Heathrow Airport after a journey of more than 13,422 miles. The previous record was set when a Boeing 747-400 flew 10,500 miles from London to Sydney in 1989.

A representative of Guinness World Records, which monitored the flight, presented Boeing’s Lars Andersen with a certificate confirming it was for the longest nonstop commercial flight.

“Across the Atlantic we saw our second sunrise of the trip,” said Capt. Suzanna Darcy-Hennemann.

The jet spent 22 hours and 43 minutes in the air.

Andersen said the flight showed the future of air travel.

“With the 777-200LR, we are changing the world,” he said. “Passengers can fly commercially between just about any two cities nonstop.”

The plane had eight pilots and was carrying an additional 27 passengers and crew, including Boeing representatives, journalists and customers.