Air Tahiti Nui on Friday 13th March filed service changes for flights between French Polynesia and Paris CDG, currently scheduled from 14th March to 20th March. One of the new flights is a non-stop service between the two airports, which is also going to be the new longest flight in the world.
Why is The Flight Being Performed?
Originally, Air Tahiti Nui operated flights from Papeete Tahiti Faa’a International Airport (PPT/NTAA) to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG/LFPG) with one stopover at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX/KLAX).
On Wednesday 11th March the United States government announced a 30-day travel ban on foreigners arriving from Schengen countries, which had already taken effect from Friday 13th March.
Due to this travel restriction, passengers flying from French Polynesia and Paris CDG will not be able to enter the United States and board their second flight.
Instead of changing to an alternative stopover airport, Air Tahiti Nui came up with a creative solution.
Allowed by the limited seat capacity and cargo weight on board, the Boeing 787 aircraft is flying directly from Papeete to Paris.
How Long is This Flight?
The direct flight from Papeete to Paris is operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, registered as F-OTOA. The aircraft was delivered in July 2019 and is currently only 8 months old.
The flight is scheduled to depart from Papeete at 03:00 and arrive at Paris at 06:20 the next day, creating a total flight time of 16 hours and 20 minutes.
The great circle distance of the flight is going to be at least 9,765 miles or 15,715 kilometers.
If the flight is successfully completed, this will set a new world record for the longest flight. Even more special, the new longest flight is actually a domestic one.
Currently the world longest flights are Singapore to Newark and Perth to London, with a total distance of 9,534 and 9,009 miles respectively.
Future Plan:
This non-stop flight is not going to be a long-term plan for Air Tahiti Nui. To keep the capacity and cargo weight at a reasonable range, the airline will try two new stopover airports in the coming week.
On 14th March TN67 flew from Paris CDG to Vancouver to Papeete, with the YVR PPT segment at 5208 miles and a flying time of 9 hours and 45 minutes.
On 16th March TN67 will fly from Paris CDG to Pointe-a-Pitre to Papeete. CDG to PTP flying time will be 9 hours and 10 minutes and the PTP to PPT flight, distance 7823 miles, will have a flying time of 12 hours and 45 minutes.
On 18th March and 19th March, TN8/7 will fly between Paris CDG and Pointe-a-Pitre and Papeete.
