A350 to become Qantas’ new flagship

Step aside, jumbos and superjumbos: there’s a new jet swooping in to claim prized ‘flagship’ status at Qantas.

It’s the modern, sleek and spacious Airbus A350-1000, which will carry the iconic Flying Kangaroo tail to all corners of the world.

Qantas has big plans for the big twin-engine plane, and they’ll roll out in three waves.

The Project Sunrise A350s

The first Qantas A350s will be the backbone of the non-stop ‘Project Sunrise’ network for direct flights from Sydney and Melbourne to New York and London, beginning in the back half of 2026.

(Sydney-London and Sydney-New York are both under consideration as the prestigious launch routes.)

Twelve special ultra-long range (ULR) versions of the A350-1000 are being custom-built for Qantas, with Airbus fitting an additional fuel tank to ensure its globe-striding range.

Qantas has of course talked up many potential Project Sunrise routes, including flights from Brisbane, and to other destinations across Europe and the Americas.

Qantas' original Project Sunrise network name-checked Brisbane, Paris, Cape Town and Rio.

However, those routes will require a second batch of A350-1000ULR orders and Qantas is keen to assess the first four Project Sunrise routes before making that commitment.

A350s to replace the Airbus A330

Those long-legged A350s will be followed by another dozen A350-1000s to replace the ageing Airbus A330s on international routes.

They won’t be alone: Qantas is also ordering a dozen more Boeing 787 Dreamliners, for a total of 24 factory-fresh jets arriving from FY2027.

These will be ‘standard’ A350-1000s without the extra fuel tank of their Project Sunrise siblings; as such, Qantas will tag them as the A350-1000LR (for ‘long range’)

How the A350 fits into Qantas' future fleet.

Speaking with Executive Traveller on the sidelines of Qantas’ launch of direct flights to Paris earlier this year, Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson confirmed the A350-1000LRs will be a “higher-density” three-class variant of the Project Sunrise A350s with business class, premium economy and economy – but without first class suites or the unique ‘Wellbeing Zone’.

The second dozen A350s will lack first class suites.

On the plus side, the A350-1000LRs will have the same doored business class suites as the Project Sunrise fleet, along with more comfortable premium economy and economy recliners.

Qantas' next-gen business class will be standard across all A350s.

However, Hudson said no decision has been made on if these A350-1000LR jets will have the same generous legroom as the Project Sunrise fleet.

This sees premium economy with a 40” pitch (two inches more than premium economy on a 787) and economy seats with a  33” pitch (one inch more than the 787).

“We’re still working through that,” Hudson shared. “We will look at that when we get closer. But premium economy is such a popular cabin, and we could look at putting (more seats) in premium economy.”

A350s to replace the A380 superjumbo

Cementing its role as the flagship of the Qantas fleet, there’ll be another order of A350-1000 jets for when the Airbus A380 superjumbos are put out to pasture, beginning in the early 2030s.

Hudson confirmed the Airbus A350 “will ultimately (be) replacing the A380s” on key long-range international routes to London and Los Angeles.

“The A350 will be the flagship aircraft that’ll have the new first class, business class, premium economy and economy.”

There’s currently no firm timeline for the superjumbo sunset, and Qantas will likely remain as flexible as possible on that front.

The effective life of the A380s has arguably been extended owing to several non-flying years, not just during the pandemic but even today.

While eight A380s out of a total fleet of ten are now active, the airline says the remaining two will wing their way back to Qantas hangars “over the next 18 months.”

That means the final Qantas A380 isn’t likely to return until the first half of 2026, with the airline citing ongoing supply chain issues impacting routine heavy maintenance and cabin upgrades.