# Longest regular non-stop airplane flight. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 25, 2010, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881 "2010-11-25T15:43:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/203 "2026-07-29T01:02:15Z")
Where “premium economy” is what used to be called just regular seats, until they shrunk everything? And those numbers still mean that half of the people on the Sydney flights will be economy. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/204 "2026-07-29T01:04:05Z")
Okay, so I’m flying economy in the back of the plane, with 97 other people, berhind a partition. In front of that partition are **four** other partitioned sections and 140 other people that I had to walk past to get to my seat. And II’m still stuck there for 24 solid hours. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/205 "2026-07-29T11:27:36Z")
The few times I’ve taken an international flight, the boarding door has been in between the business class & economy cabins. You’d turn left if you had an expensive seat and right if you didn’t, and the rich folks didn’t have to studiously ignore the proles walking past them. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/206 "2026-07-29T12:06:16Z")
I do work for a certain client that is jokingly rumoured to apply a certain hiring test - they walk candidates down an airbridge toward a plane. If they turn right on reaching the plane, they aren’t _quite the right sort_ to be working for them. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/207 "2026-07-29T12:10:58Z")
I have the pleasure of flying Australia-UK every few years. I really just prefer to get it over with. Layovers just tend to be limbo - not long enough to get any sort of real break but long enough to just add a good many hours to the journey. Maybe if/when I do the 24 hour straight through flight I will regret it, but that’s not my expectation. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/208 "2026-07-29T12:45:24Z")
If you ask “Hey, where’s the stairs to the other level”, do they offer you the job on the spot? ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/209 "2026-07-29T14:53:44Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Yeah, if I were flying that far, I’d want a two-hour layover or two somewhere in between. I’m thinking a two-_day_ layover midway in between. Or the hell with complimentary drinks - I want my complimentary propofol. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/210 "2026-07-30T02:58:11Z")
The way it goes though is: say you have 14 days for a trip to Europe. As it is, 3 days approx of that is spent on planes and short layovers, so you are down to 11. If you have two day layovers both ways, that’s six days travelling and you are getting close to half your European vacation just spent getting there and back. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/211 "2026-07-30T03:42:13Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > I have the pleasure of flying Australia-UK every few years. I really just prefer to get it over with. > > Layovers just tend to be limbo - not long enough to get any sort of real break but long enough to just add a good many hours to the journey. > > Maybe if/when I do the 24 hour straight through flight I will regret it, but that’s not my expectation. I’ve done a couple of long flights. Mostly NYC to far away, like Tokyo, Sidney, and Capetown. I agree with you. I fly non-stop if i possibly can. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/212 "2026-07-30T07:01:09Z")
I’m mostly retired so I have the option of taking my time. Unless I get the propofol. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > Mostly NYC to far away, like Tokyo, Sidney, and Capetown. I agree with you. I fly non-stop if i possibly can. East coast US to Asia a few time. It’s mostly Mrs. Martian who has trouble on these long flights. I did get business class once and it made an enormous difference. ---
**Author:** ![dcbwhaley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcbwhaley/32/21437_2.png) [@dcbwhaley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dcbwhaley)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/213 "2026-07-30T10:47:24Z")
Manchester to Vancouver crippled me. I had to overnight in Toronto to survive ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/214 "2026-07-30T10:49:15Z")
I’m semi-retired, too. But it’s longer away from home. It’s longer away from my cats. Sometimes it’s longer away from my husband. And it’s still traveling. I hate airports. I’m always feeling stressed about the security, and that i might miss my flight. (I have nearly missed my flight by getting lost in a book. A friend did miss a flight by falling asleep at the airport.) Also, the odds of my checked luggage being lost are much higher if there’s a transfer. I always take the direct flight if i can. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/215 "2026-07-30T14:54:04Z")
99% of the time I will take the direct flight. But when we’re talking about over 20 hours on one flight (which I admit I haven’t done) I start thinking that there must be some place interesting I can visit along the way to break it up. I would never deliberately opt for a typical layover if I can avoid it. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/216 "2026-07-30T14:57:14Z")
I will never be so eager to get somewhere in as short a time as possible as to subject myself to a 20+ hour non-stop flight. And I love flying! Much better to plan a trip to include a stopover at some other destination along the way. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/217 "2026-07-30T16:14:54Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Where “premium economy” is what used to be called just regular seats, until they shrunk everything? No, on most long haul international flights Premium Economy is a wider seat than regular Economy, with greater recline and some sort of footrest. IMO it’s closer to what Business Class was like in the 1990s before Business Class turned into fancy pods with lie-flat seats. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/218 "2026-07-30T16:21:47Z")
Well, back in the… 1970s, all the seats were roomier than today’s economy. But i feel like a lot of that shrinkage happened shortly after deregulation in the 80s, which is a long time ago, now. I’ve bought up to premium economy for long flights, and enjoyed having enough room that i could stretch out my legs. I’m not usually crowded side to side unless the passenger next to me is very large. (I’m fat, but my shoulders and hips fit in an economy seat, and those are my widest parts.) ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2026, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/219 "2026-07-30T16:34:28Z")
The longest I sat on a plane was 22 hours from Los Angeles to Da Nang, RVN. There was a stop for fuel in Guam, but we weren’t allowed off the plane. ---
**Author:** ![dcbwhaley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcbwhaley/32/21437_2.png) [@dcbwhaley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dcbwhaley)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2026, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/220 "2026-07-31T14:06:02Z")
But the layovers are part of the holiday. When I went to Vancouver I had a two day layover in Toronto which allowed me to go to Niagara. Falls And on the way back two days in Chicago with a rail trip to Milwaukee ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2026, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/221 "2026-08-01T01:28:58Z")
Then you won’t be in the market for the 24 hour straight through flight. Quite obviously it’s for people who want to get from Australia to Europe quickly. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2026, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881/222 "2026-08-01T02:16:52Z")
Where would you go that would take 24 hours? I flew NY to Cape Town with a refueling so in Gambia, and i think that was less than 24 hours. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/longest-regular-non-stop-airplane-flight/561881.md?page=12)