What Pilots Actually Do Hour-By-Hour On An 18-Hour Flight To New York-JFK

Published Jul 18, 2026, 3:00 PM EDT Louis is a military historian and the staff writer for History of War magazine, a leading military history monthly. He also has an interest in private and commercial aviation. SQ23/SQ24, Singapore Airlines' Airbus A350-900ULR flight from Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) to New York John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) is a technological and logistical marvel. It covers an average of 9,537 miles (15,348 km), requiring the aircraft to remain in the sky for 18 to 19 hours. The world's longest flight also requires the personnel crewing it to remain sharp throughout. Unsurprisingly, such a long flight time well exceeds the legal limits for a two-person flight crew. The flight crew is bolstered to four members, allowing each crew member to use the crew bunk for a four-hour-long and a 2.5-hour-long rest period. These crew members aren't just sticking the A350-900ULR on autopilot and relaxing. It is essential that they are well rested because they have essential duties to carry out while the aircraft is in flight. What Pilots Do During An Ultra-Long-Haul Flight Credit: Shutterstock In response to the rapidly approaching launch of Project Sunrise, Qantas' Airbus A350-1000ULR flights from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD), Pilot Nick from Lessons from the Flight Deck gave his reflections on what it's like to fly for such extended periods. He writes, "The metabolic cost is the constant vigilance. You’re monitoring six fuel tanks, four engine indicators, weather radar, traffic radar, ATC frequencies in three regions, oceanic crossing procedures, alternate airport availability over the next 1,500 miles, and the dozen subtle ways the airplane talks to you." The table below is an impression of what pilots will do hour-by-hour on the Singapore to New York flight based on each crew member having a four-hour and a 2.5-hour rest allowance. Please note that this is an estimation based on an 18.5-hour flight time: Hour Activities 0-1 Departure from Singapore. This is a high-workload period, with potential assistance from the reserve crew. It is standard ultra-long-haul procedure to have all four crew members in the cockpit for takeoff and landing. 1-4 Initial cruising period with regular route, fuel, and weather checks, along with communication with air traffic control. The reserve crew may rest during this period. 4-7 Reserve crew returns from rest and takes over for the middle cruise. They'll receive a briefing from the primary crew on anything that they need to be made aware of. The primary captain and first officer may take a rest period. 7-11 The first crew returns, allowing the reserve crew to go for their long rest. This is a period of deep cruise, where remote Pacific airspace is crossed. 11-15 The reserve crew returns from rest, allowing the primary flight crew to go for their long period of rest. The reserve crew begins to prepare for arrival, with frequent air traffic control communications as they approach and enter US airspace. 15-18.5 The primary crew returns and receives a handover. The approach to New York begins. This is another high-workload period, with the crew having to navigate New York's exceptionally busy airspace before landing and taxiing to the gate. It is clear that ultra-long-haul crew do far more than put the autopilot on and watch the world go by. They also do all of these duties in an environment where the air is thinner, and they are steadily dehydrated. Where Pilots Rest While Working Aboard The A350-900ULR Credit: Shutterstock One of the main activities that a pilot will be doing aboard Singapore Airlines' flight from Singapore to New York is resting, with each getting almost seven hours away from the flight deck. According to Executive Traveller, A350s come with two upstairs rest areas for pilots and cabin crew members. The forward rest area, located above the foremost passenger cabin, is for pilots, while the rear rest area is for cabin crew. You can usually tell where these rest areas are because of the lack of central overhead luggage bins. The pilot rest area has two beds, while the cabin crew's space has six bunks. Pilots and crew stay safe in these rest areas because each is concealed behind a steadfast security door with a combination lock. These rest areas are concealed behind a sliding screen. Inside is a small staircase that takes the pilot or crew member up to the rest area. In the rest areas, pilots and crew members can sleep, read, or use the WiFi to catch up on their favorite shows. Some airlines also install in-flight entertainment systems. Each bunk is separated by a privacy curtain. How The A350-900ULR Flies So Far Credit: Shutterstock Singapore Airlines' flights from Singapore to New York don't just need pilots who are talented and well-rested. It also requires a plane, which is an undeniable engineering marvel. While the standard A350-900 can fly 8,500 nautical miles (15,742 km), the A350-900ULR, built bespoke for Singapore Airlines, can fly 9,700 nautical miles (17,964 km), with a maximum flight time of 20 hours. The table below shows specifications for the Airbus A350-900ULR according to data from Aircraft Investigation. It shows a high maximum takeoff weight and fuel capacity and a substantially lower passenger capacity than is standard: Number built 11 Seating 173 across two classes (80 business class and 93 premium economy) Engine 2 x Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-84 producing 84,190 lbf (374.5 kN) Maximum takeoff weight 617,300 lb (280,000 kg) Usable fuel 44,000 US gallons (166,488 liters) Wingspan 212 feet 5 inches (64.75 meters) The A350-900ULR will soon no longer be the longest flying operational A350 variant. That is because of Qantas' Project Sunrise flights from SYD to LHR, which will make use of the upcoming A350-1000ULR. An exact range hasn't been published yet, but it will be able to fly for up to 22 hours. That will require reduced seating to 238 passengers to facilitate a new rear-center fuel tank with a 4,400-gallon (20,000-liter) capacity. New Considerations For Project Sunrise Pilots Credit: Qantas The Project Sunrise philosophy for a better mechanical range is much like the A350-900ULR: more fuel and a higher maximum takeoff weight to sustain it. Airbus engineers have also been hard at work to show that the fuel system can operate safely, particularly in scenarios where large quantities of fuel have to be suddenly diverted. The aircraft also makes use of the advantages that come as standard with all A350s, such as the 25% fuel efficiency improvement compared with jets of the previous generation. The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB, which exclusively powers this aircraft family, is also known for being among the world's most efficient widebody engines. The jet achieves all of this while having a 50% lower noise footprint than the Airbus A330. As with Singapore Airlines' ultra-long-haul A350 flights, Project Sunrise trips will be crewed by four pilots, with long and short rest periods built into the schedule. All four pilots will usually make their way to the flight deck during the busiest periods, such as takeoff and landing. These systems have been standardized by ultra-long-haul carriers such as Singapore Airlines, Qantas, Emirates, and Cathay Pacific over the past 20 years. Project Sunrise flights will cross between nine and eleven time zones, depending on the exact time of year that they will be flying. Qantas' circadian rhythm research will help pilots to recover more quickly from jet lag. Meal times, lighting, and rest cycles will need to be carefully choreographed with this need in mind. The Other Ultra-Long-Range A350-900ULR Routes Credit: Shutterstock It isn't just the flight from Singapore to New York that is long enough for pilots to need plenty of rest. Earlier this month, Simple Flying's Luke Bodell reported on the carrier's new network of A350-900ULR flights over 14 hours. These routes have a combined mileage of 84,507 miles. They all originate from Singapore Changi Airport (SIN). The North American destinations are Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) on the West Coast, while Newark Liberty International (EWR) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) are served on the East Coast. Singapore Airlines also flies its A350-900ULRs to five European airports. These are Manchester Airport (MAN), London Heathrow Airport (LHR), London Gatwick Airport (LGW), Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport (MAD), and Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport (BCN). The final destination is Cape Town International (CPT). The shortest of these routes is the 14-hour-and-ten-minute flight to Cape Town, which is operated via Johannesburg (JNB). This route is operated daily. The most frequent route is to San Francisco, which operates twice daily. The flights to LGW are less regular but peak at twice daily. Finally, the longest routes are to the two New York airports, both of which have a block time exceeding 19 hours. All of these routes divert from Singapore Airlines' standard Airbus A350 layout of 253 seats across three classes. This features 42 business class seats in a 1-2-1 layout, 24 premium economy seats in a 2-4-2 layout, and 187 economy seats in a 3-3-3 configuration. Singapore Airlines' A350-900ULR configuration has space for just 161 passengers, with 67 business class seats and room for 94 premium economy passengers. Meanwhile, there is no economy cabin.