QF11 distance and great-circle path
QF11 covers 12,061 km, or 7,494 miles. That makes it an ultra-long-haul flight, near the limit of what most twinjets can fly non-stop. Of the 439 routes we track, it ranks 25 by distance.
The plane leaves Sydney heading north-east. On the map above, the line looks curved. That is normal. The shortest path over a round planet never looks straight on a flat screen. Our guide explains how the SYD-LAX route appears on a tracker map.
Why QF11 block time differs from cruise time
The schedule allows 13.8 hours from gate to gate. That works out to about 872 km/h. An Airbus A380-800 cruises faster than that. The gap is taxi time, climbing, descending and holding.
Flying east, this route usually picks up tailwinds high up. The flight back west normally takes longer, even though the distance is identical. See how timing changes the trip in our red-eye flight guide.
Can the Airbus A380-800 comfortably fly QF11?
Not really. It uses about 81% of the Airbus A380-800's range. That leaves room for a full load of passengers and bags. The full numbers are on our aircraft page for the Airbus A380-800.
What to know about QF11
- Time change: you land 18 hours behind the time you left. That is enough to cause jet lag. Here is how pilots handle it.
- Crosses the equator: you swap seasons between takeoff and landing.
- Crosses the date line: the calendar date changes while you are in the air.