See the history of Qantas' famous 'kangaroo route' from Australia to England that once took 12 days but will soon take just hours

Vintage photos chronical the historic Australia-UK route as it evolved from tiny biplanes hopping 31 stops to large jetliners soon flying nonstop.

Mar 29, 2025 - 14:42

See the history of Qantas' famous 'kangaroo route' from Australia to England that once took 12 days but will soon take just hours

Inside a Qantas Boeing 707 cockpit. — Inside a Qantas Boeing 707 cockpit that once flew the Kangaroo Route.
Fairfax Media Archives/Fairfax Media via Getty Images

Qantas' historic "kangaroo route" is a prime example of aviation innovation over the past century.
It dates back to 1934 when tiny biplanes began hopping 12 days between Australia and the UK.
Project Sunrise will launch the historic trek nonstop come 2027, which will last up to 21 hours.

The business of flying people from point A to point B has evolved over the decades from small rickety prop planes to massive jetliners capable of carrying hundreds of people.

Among the most famous examples of this progress is Qantas' "Kangaroo Route" between Australia and the UK.

Early versions of the over 12,000-mile journey first operated in the mid-1930s, and the route is still going strong today — but it's about to travel even faster.

What was once a 12-day and up-to-31-stop route is set to become a 21-hour nonstop journey by 2027. The Sydney to London flight is poised to become the world's longest route thanks so a specially equipped Airbus A350.

Qantas' International and Freight CEO Cam Wallace told Business Insider the ultra-long-range plane will "unlock the ability to fly nonstop from Australia to anywhere in the world."

The unofficial Kangaroo Route started as an airmail service in 1934.

Vintage photo of Qantas' DH50 airmail plane in 1934. — A Qantas Empire Airways DH50 flew the inaugural airmail route from Brisbane to Darwin in 1934.
Queensland State Archives

The first version of the Kangaroo Route was an airmail operation flown by Qantas Empire Airways, where both Qantas and Britain's Imperial Airways each had about half a stake.

In 1934, QEA started flying between Brisbane and Singapore via Darwin, which then connected to England. It was a precursor to today's codesharing partnerships.

Passenger transport began in 1935, and the route took 12 days.

Vintage photo of the interior of the DH86 biplane used by Qantas. — There was no cabin crew to hand out snacks, and the 10-passenger De Havilland DH86 biplanes were a far cry from the luxury of today's airliners.
Print Collector/Getty Images

The airmail route quickly morphed into weekly passenger flights in 1935. Qantas flew the leg to Singapore, where travelers connected to London on Imperial.

The series of snaking connections included up to 31 stops, including overnights, across Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The trek from Brindisi in Southern Italy to Paris was via train.

The long journey — which was reserved for wealthy flyers as tickets cost £195 one-way (about $15,250, adjusted for inflation) — was still faster than the six-week option by boat.

Flying boats were introduced in 1938 to shave off time.

Onboard a Qantas flying boat in 1938. — The flying boats operated from Sydney Harbour's Rose Bay.
Qantas

QAE's Short Empire flying boats were launched in 1938 and cut the flying time by several hours.

The flights were rocky and rough due to turbulence and a lack of weather radar. After the fall of Singapore in 1942, World War II halted the kangaroo service.

A truncated Kangaroo Route was revived in 1943 with the 'Double Sunrise.'

Qantas Catalina aircraft used for the Double Sunrise, 1943. — The "double sunrise" was coined because passengers and crew saw two sunrises during the trek. The planes carried up to three passengers and mail.
Qantas

Qantas' modified route connected Australia to England via Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) instead of Singapore.

The nonstop Ceylon flight across the Indian Ocean lasted up to 33 hours and is still the longest commercial flight in history by time.

The route used Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats, followed later by Liberator planes, the latter of which were the first to sport Qantas' kangaroo logo.

Converted war-era bombers took over the re-established route in 1945.

Vintage photo of the bunks and seats in the Avro Lancastrian. — The Lancastrian had nine sideways-facing seats and convertible bunks. The planes' unreliability meant airports in each layover city had to carry spare components and engines.
Qantas

Qantas operated the portion between Australia and Karachi, Pakistan, using Avro 691 Lancastrian aircraft.

Its partner, the British Overseas Airways Corporation, or BOAC — which is an early version of British Airways — took over for the rest of the trip to London. The trek took about 70 hours.

Qantas reverted the Ceylon portion of the route back to Singapore after the war.

Qantas fully took over the route in 1947 and trademarked "Kangaroo Route."

Collage of the Kangaroo Route stops, stitched with pictures of the Constellation's inaugural flight. — The stops were Darwin, Singapore, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), Karachi, Cairo, Castel Benito in Tripoli, and Rome.
National Library of Australia, The Sydney Morning Herald/Getty Images

The airline used 29-seat quad-engine Lockheed Constellations to reduce flight time to about 55 hours across seven stops and four total travel days. Tickets were £525 (about $22,600, adjusted for inflation).

"When the Kangaroo Route launched in 1947, it opened a new frontier for aviation," Wallace said.

In 1954, Qantas received its first Super Constellation. These carried more people and further reduced travel time.

Qantas introduced the Boeing 707 in 1959.

Vintage photos of passengers on the Boeing 707 in London — According to Qantas, the fare from Sydney to London in 1959 cost about 30 weeks of one's average weekly earnings.
Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix via Getty Images

Thanks to its more powerful jet engines, Qantas' 707 aircraft could carry up to 90 people and make the trek to London in 27 hours.

It was the first Jet Age aircraft bought by Qantas.

The Boeing 747 cut flying time to less than a day in 1971.

Qantas 747 upper deck bar and lounge with orange couches. — The 747's immense size helped bring affordable air travel to the masses and changed the landscape of international flying.
Qantas

The famous 747 jumbo jet flew from Australia to London via a single stop in Singapore.

From 1979 to 1985, Qantas operated an all-747 fleet, complete with comfortable seats and an exclusive lounge and bar.

The Airbus A380 complemented the 747 beginning in 2008.

Qantas A380. — The Qantas Airbus A380 double-decker can carry nearly 500 passengers — 50x the capacity of the DH86 biplanes that flew in 1935.
James D. Morgan/Getty Images

The A380 currently flies from Sydney and Melbourne to London, with a stop in Singapore. The route previously went through Dubai.

The mammoth A380 complemented the 747 fleet for decades until the iconic "Queen of the Skies" was officially retired during the pandemic in 2020.

Qantas' Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners began flying nonstop between Perth and London in 2018.

A Qantas cabin crew member checks the business class cabin on board a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. — The plane carries 236 passengers split across business, premium economy, and coach.
James D. Morgan/Getty Images

It was the first nonstop passenger service connecting Australia with the UK, but it was only for Perth.

Key destinations in Eastern Australia, like Sydney and Brisbane, still lack nonstop service.

Deep-pocket travelers can experience the famous Kangaroo Route for $30,000 in 2026.

Mr. Gollan, Lord Swinton, Sir Stephen Holmes, and Mr. E. Harrison (L-R) leaving Qantas Constellation in London, 1953 — English politicians leaving a Qantas Constellation in London in 1953.
Fairfax Media Archives/Fairfax Media via Getty Images

Tour company Captain's Choice is flying a one-off tourist trip in February 2026 to nearly mirror the Kangaroo Route as it was in 1947 — hops included.

Seats start at about $30,000. While Qantas is not pricing or selling any of the tickets, it is operating the Airbus A330 charter plane.

Project Sunrise is expected to launch in 2027 in a full-circle moment for Qantas.

Qantas A350-1000 test flight. — Qantas said at a conference in March that the one-stop treks would fly alongside Project Sunrise for scale and flexibility.
James D. Morgan/Getty Images

The up-to-21-hour and 10,000-mile flight will officially eliminate the "hop" from the historic Kangaroo Route.

Project Sunrise will include two ultra-long-haul routes using a fleet of purpose-built A350-1000ULRs: Sydney to London and Sydney to New York.

Qantas is introducing new cabins on the A350s.

Qantas first-class cabin for Project Sunrise — A rending of the new first class. Test flights have been conducted to see how people will fare on the ultra-long-haul flights.
Qantas

Qantas's A350 will have just 238 seats and will boast four different cabins — including economy, premium economy, and enclosed business and first-class suites.

The airline announced in late February that the plane would enter final assembly in September, followed by flight testing and delivery in the second half of 2026.

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