A few days ago, American Airlines announced a new ultra long haul flight, which is exciting for a couple of different reasons. This flight is now on sale, so I wanted to go over all the details, including the schedule.
American will fly seasonal Dallas to Brisbane route
As of October 26, 2024, American will launch a daily seasonal flight between Dallas (DFW) and Brisbane (BNE). The flight is expected to run through late March 2025, and will operate with the following schedule:
AA7 Dallas to Brisbane departing 10:35PM arriving 5:30AM (+2 days)
AA8 Brisbane to Dallas departing 10:00AM arriving 9:20AM
The 8,303-mile flight is blocked at 15hr55min westbound and 14hr20min eastbound. Once launched, this will be American’s longest route. For that matter, it beats out American’s former longest route (discontinued years ago), which was from Dallas to Hong Kong, and covered a distance of 8,123 miles.
This flight will be operated as part of the transpacific joint venture between American and Qantas. American highlights how this route will enable one-stop connections to Brisbane from more than 100 destinations across the United States that currently require at least two stops. American also highlights how Brisbane is “known for sensational coastlines, world-famous zoos, a vibrant cultural scene, and 280 days of sun every year.”
Below you can see the planned combined transpacific network for American and Qantas in the peak winter 2024-2025 season.
American’s premium Boeing 787-9 will fly to Brisbane
There’s a lot that’s exciting about this flight, as this is also the first route that’s confirmed to be operated by American’s new “premium” Boeing 787-9s. New Boeing 787s delivered as of this year will feature all-new interiors, and the planes will be in an ultra-premium configuration.
Specifically, these 787-9s will feature just 244 seats, including 51 business class seats, 32 premium economy seats, 18 extra legroom economy seats, and 143 economy seats. As a point of comparison, American’s current 787-9s feature 285 seats, including 30 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, 36 extra legroom economy seats, and 198 economy seats.
The interiors on these new jets look like a huge improvement over what American is currently offering. American will debut the Adient Ascent business class product with doors on this aircraft, so that’s super exciting.
I suspect American is operating this version of the 787-9 to Brisbane not because it’s going to be American’s most premium route, but rather to avoid having to take a payload restriction when there are strong headwinds, given how long this route is. At 8,300+ miles, this route would be pushing the limits of American’s “standard” 787-9s, which are heavier, due to having more seats.
Since the new 787-9s are lower capacity, they’ll also be lower weight. One of the reasons that Qantas is able to operate such long 787-9 flights is because the carrier’s 787-9s have so few seats.
Bottom line
As of late October 2024, American will launch a new daily seasonal flight between Dallas and Brisbane. At over 8,300 miles, this will be American’s longest route. On top of that, it will be served by a brand new premium configured Boeing 787-9, with new interiors, including a business class suite with doors.
I’m curious to see if American can make this Dallas to Brisbane route work, and if it’ll return in future seasons. We’ve seen United hugely expand in Australia lately, but even United hasn’t succeeded across the board, and has decreased service in a few markets.
What do you make of American’s new Dallas to Brisbane route?
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