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New York is the US' largest city, and it's routinely ranked among the most economically influential cities in the world. Its only true rival is London, and the route between the two cities is the busiest across the Atlantic. In addition, New York has nonstop service to every inhabited continent, but its distance from some of these places means its home to some of the world's longest flights, with the majority going to John F. Kennedy International Airport(JFK). New York-JFK is the newest of the three major New York airports. Newark Liberty is the other international airport, but it's dominated by United Airlines, and its location in New Jersey makes it inconvenient for anyone not living in or traveling to Manhattan. LaGuardia, meanwhile, only handles domestic and preclearance flights, leaving JFK with the bulk of New York's long-haul services. According to Cirium, an aviation analytics company, these are JFK's six longest routes in 2025. Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, is connected to New York via 474 nonstop flights each way throughout 2025. The two cities are 6,785 NM (12,566 km) apart by great-circle distance, although the actual ground distance covered is longer due to Russian airspace restrictions and the jet stream. Flights to Taipei are scheduled to take up to 17 hours and 20 minutes. On this route, Star Alliance member EVA Air is the dominant force. Daily Boeing 777-300ERs serve this corridor, of which EVA Air has 33. These planes come in three configurations, but the aircraft that EVA Air sends to New York feature 39 Safran Cirrus reverse herringbone seats for Royal Laurel, 56 premium economy seats, and 238 economy seats, per aeroLOPA. Additionally, the economy seats are configured nine-abreast, which is becoming a rarity on a 777 today. Elsewhere, SkyTeam member China Airlines also serves this route. It only flies to JFK four times a week, and the 777-300ER is also its jet of choice. China Airlines installs 40 Collins Aerospace Super Diamond reverse herringbone seats for business class, 62 premium economy seats, and 256 economy seats. The layout and seat models are comparable to those of EVA Air, but China Airlines installs ten-abreast economy seats on the 777-300ER. New York To The Pearl River Delta Where the Pearl River meets the South China Sea is one of the most urbanized and developed regions in the entire world. Known officially as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, this megacity is home to over 86 million people and has a GDP roughly equivalent to Canada's. As such, there's a huge demand for flights worldwide from several cities in the megapolis, including to New York. From Guangzhou, China Southern flies the Boeing 777-300ER to the Big Apple. This route only operates once per week, and at 6,953 NM (12,878 km), it is the fifth-longest from JFK. Flights are scheduled to take 16 hours and 20 minutes, with China Southern's 777-300ERs holding 361 total passengers. The business class cabin (Stelia Solstys) features 28 seats, while the premium economy cabin holds 28 seats. Economy, meanwhile, is made up of 305 seats. Cathay Pacific, meanwhile, flies JFK's fourth-longest route to and from Hong Kong International Airport. By great circle distance, this route is 7,014 NM (12,990 km) long, while flight times are blocked for up to 16 hours and 25 minutes. Cathay operates up to three flights per day on this route: one with the Boeing 777-300ER configured in a four-class configuration, one with a three-class Airbus A350-1000, and one with a three-class Airbus A350-900. JFK To The Philippines Philippine Airlines was the launch customer of what was then called the Airbus A350-900HGW in 2017, a variant of the A350-900 with a 280-tonne Maximum Takeoff Weight that was also to be featured on Singapore Airlines' A350-900ULRs. This weight variant has since been made standard across all A350-900s, with the route from New York to Manila being the longest operated by a standard A350-900 out of JFK. However, the carrier's future A350-1000s are expected to take over this route. By great-circle distance, New York-JFK and Ninoy Aquino International Airport are 7,404 NM (13,712 km) apart, making this the third-longest route operated out of JFK. This route is operated year-round by Philippine Airlines, which flies the A350-900 three times per week. PR127 to Manila is scheduled to take 17 hours and 20 minutes, while the flight from Manila, PR126, has a block time of 15 hours and 45 minutes. Philippine Airlines configures its A350s with 295 seats. This figure includes 30 Thompson Vantage XL seats for business class, 24 Safran 5810 recliners for premium economy, and 241 Safran Z300 seats for economy. The economy cabins are noticeably spacious, given the compact size of the premium cabins, and each row has 33 inches (83.82 centimeters) of legroom. This is one of the highest figures you'll find in standard economy. Down Under To JFK In the days of the Boeing 747-400, Qantas's daily services from Sydney to New York JFK had to make a stopover at Los Angeles International Airport. Today, however, Qantas uses the Boeing 787-9, and it has found a new refueling point. Nowadays, Qantas flight QF3 departs Sydney five times a week bound for Auckland, where it spends roughly two hours on the ground before departing for New York. Here, it is scheduled to arrive 15 hours and 30 minutes later. By great-circle distance, Auckland and New York JFK are 7,691 NM (14,207 km), making this the second-longest flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport. On this route, Qantas competes against Air New Zealand, but despite being the flag carrier of New Zealand, the latter has a smaller presence on this route. Air New Zealand flies a Boeing 787-9, just like Qantas, but it only operates this route three times a week, as opposed to Qantas's five-times weekly service. Qantas configures its Boeing 787s with 236 seats total, consisting of 42 business class seats, 28 premium economy seats, and 166 economy seats. Air New Zealand's 787s, meanwhile, fly with 27 business class seats, 33 premium economy seats, and 215 economy seats, for a total of 275 seats. Air New Zealand's configuration is relatively standard for a 787, but Qantas's layout is one of the least-dense 787s in the industry. A Long Journey To The Lion City Singapore Airlines' nonstop service from New York-JFK to Singapore Changi Airport is not just the longest nonstop route from JFK. Indeed, it's also the world's longest nonstop flight by practically every measure. This route is flown by the Airbus A350-900ULR, a special variant of the A350 with more fuel capacity and a deactivated forward cargo hold, and it debuted aerodynamic improvements later ported over to the rest of the A350 family. This route measures at 8,288 NM (15,349 km), narrowly beating out the world's second-longest nonstop flight from neighboring Newark to Singapore. Singapore Airlines operated this route from 2004 to 2013 with the Airbus A340-500, and then restarted in 2018 with the Airbus A350-900ULR. The JFK route, meanwhile, was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic with the standard A350-900 as a cargo-only service, and was retained afterward as a passenger flight with the A350-900ULR. Perhaps the most unique aspect of the A350-900ULR is its configuration. Singapore Airlines only has 161 seats on a plane that, in the firm's standard configuration, holds 253 passengers in a premium-heavy layout. Its A350-900ULRs have 67 business class seats and 94 premium economy seats, with no economy section. In 2027, these planes will be refitted with an even more premium-heavy layout consisting of 58 premium economy seats, 70 business class seats, and four first class seats. The Future Longest Route From New York At the heart of Qantas's long-awaited Project Sunrise is the launch of nonstop services from Sydney to London. However, also part of Project Sunrise is the launch of nonstop flights between Sydney and JFK, which will be the airport's longest flight at 8,646 NM (16,043 km), but shorter than the service to London. Additionally, the success of these routes could lead Qantas to launch nonstop services to London and New York from other Australian cities, such as Melbourne.
