Next week will mark a symbolic milestone in the history of commercial aviation: an Airbus A350-1000ULR will take off from Toulouse-Blagnac and fly to Melbourne without a single stopover, foreshadowing the future direct routes between Europe and Australia promised by Qantas’ “Project Sunrise.”
According to the Australian press, this test flight will depart from Toulouse-Blagnac for a journey of approximately 17,000 kilometers and nearly 22 hours of flight time, before landing in Melbourne on July 24, around midday. The aircraft in question, registered as F-WULR, is set to connect France and Australia in a single flight for the first time, a feat that has never been achieved commercially between the two continents.
It is important to note that the aircraft is configured as a test aircraft, still lacking a passenger cabin, and serves as a flying test bed for the certification of the ultra-long-range version of the Airbus wide-body jet.
The star of this adventure is far from unknown to the Airbus teams. The F-WULR prototype, serial number MSN707, made its first flight on June 2, 2026, from Toulouse, on an inaugural flight lasting three hours and forty-three minutes, reaching an altitude of over 41,000 feet.