Double Sunrise: History's Longest Ever Commercial Air Service By LUKE PETERS

The unique post-War commercial passenger flights were airborne longer than any other either before or since.

These days, we think of long-haul flights as being operated by modern Boeing or Airbus aircraft, being flown in relative comfort and with multiple amenities at our disposal for the duration of the flight. However, a little-known fact is that one service many years ago lasted far more hours than any long-haul flight operating today. Let’s take a closer look at this record-breaking and rather unique operation.

Regular readers of Simple Flying will be aware that we often cover stories relating to the world’s longest passenger flights. In May of this year, we reported that 18 non-stop passenger routes exceeding 8,000 miles (12,875 km) in length were being operated at that time.

Likewise, back in March, we reported that Cathay Pacific had stolen Singapore Airlines’ crown to claim that it would be operating the world’s longest passenger flight from April 3, 2022. The airline’s preferred North Atlantic routing from New York to Hong Kong comes in at around 16,618 kilometers (10,300 miles), taking between 16-17 hours.

Given that most modern airliners broadly fly at similar speeds, it follows that longer flights in terms of distance take longer to fly in terms of time. However, in 1943, a unique operation was started under the auspices of a commercial airline service which remains the longest passenger airline service ever operated (in terms of duration) to this day.

Cathay Pacific currently flies the longest route in terms of distance than any other airline. Photo: Vincenzo Pace / Simple Flying

Background

What quickly became known as the ‘Double Sunrise’ operation, the unique flights were inaugurated in 1943 to re-establish Australia to England air links that had been cut due to the fall of Singapore to the Japanese in 1942.

From its inception, the service operated from a seaplane base in Crawley, close to Perth, in Western Australia. Here, the flights operated to the well-established Royal Air Force base at Lake Koggala close to the city of Galle in what was then Ceylon, since renamed Sri Lanka. The service’s nickname was derived from the crew and passengers observing two sunrises on each flight.

The trailblazing route was later extended to Karachi in British India (which is now part of Pakistan). Karachi was the southernmost point on the vital empire route from London, operated by British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC).

The Double Sunrise flights traveled from Crawley, near Perth to Galle in southern Ceylon and onto Karachi. Image: GCMap

The history of the ‘Double Sunrise’ flights

In 1943, as the Second World War raged on in various corners of the world, the need to re-establish a safe air route between England and Australia became apparent to the governments of both territories. There was a real need for passengers, mail, and other goods to be transported between the two countries, who, as allies in the war and historically having been closely cooperating nations of the Commonwealth, had benefited from decent pre-war air links for many years.

Following close cooperation between the two governments as well as the leaders of their armed forces, it was decided that Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) personnel would be seconded to a new special division to be set up to operate the flights. This division would be tasked to fly Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats, which would fly under the Qantas name and brand, to fly from Western Australia to the RAF base located at Lake Koggala in southern Ceylon in the Indian Ocean, which remained as a heavily fortified British colony at the time.

Qantas Catalina VH-EAX operated many of the long over-water Double Sunrise operations. Photo: John Oxley Library via Wikimedia Commons

Once in operation, the flights became the longest non-stop air route of any airline at that time. The flight covered just over 3,500 nautical miles (4,020 statute miles or 6,480 km), a route that was almost entirely over the Indian Ocean, with very few sections of the flights over land.

Superior airmanship skills required

The epic flights were flown without radios, as wireless radiotelephonic equipment had not yet been adequately developed to provide coverage over large swathes of ocean. Similarly, without radio navigation equipment, the flight crews relied solely on rudimentary navigation techniques using maps, compasses, and celestial navigation, using stars as navigational tools.

Five Catalina aircraft were supplied to the RAAF by the British Air Ministry, and each was allocated a name that matched stars used for navigation along the routes of the long flights, these being –

Rigel Star
Spica Star
Altair Star
Vega Star
Antares Star

With the Catalina cruising at around 125 mph (200 kph), each flight would take anything between 27 and 33 hours. The departures from Western Australia were meticulously planned so that the aircraft would cross Japanese-occupied territories in East Asia during the hours of darkness.

The route flown by the Catalinas was outbound from Crawley to Exmouth, Western Australia, before coasting out towards Cocos Island or Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, before tracking directly to Galle. Once the service was established, the operation was run weekly. It was eventually paired up with the BOAC service from London to Karachi to provide a complete UK-Australia air route.

Initially, the section between Galle and Karachi was served using surface transport, but in the interests of time, this was soon replaced with the Catalinas flying onwards from Galle to Karachi. Given the timings of the westbound flights, crews and passengers onboard would observe two sunrises as they were airborne for so long.

This led to the moniker of ‘Double Sunrise’ being applied to the operation as a whole. RAAF/Qantas crews would change in Galle, taking the next plane in either direction to minimize the passengers’ overall length of the journey.Qantas Catalina ‘Antares Star‘ sets off from Crawley, Western Australia on another Double Sunrise mission. Photo: IWM via Wikimedia Commons

Specialist aircraft

The Catalinas used for the Double Sunrise operation were all originally ordered by the UK Air Ministry for use by the Royal Air Force. During the war, RAF Catalina squadrons were deployed in several wartime roles, such as aerial surveillance, search and rescue, and reconnaissance missions.

Due to their design, including their vast wing holding large volumes of fuel, Catalinas were ideally suited for flying long sectors, and their ability to take off and land on the water gave them added operational flexibilities that conventional aircraft did not have.

Stripped of all non-essential equipment for the ultra-long flights (including de-icing equipment and insulation), the average weight on take-off for the Catalinas was around 35,000 lbs (16,000kg). The maximum take-off weight for a Catalina is 35,400lbs (16,100kg), including a maximum fuel load of 1,988 imperial gallons (9,040 liters). This gave the Catalinas a range of 3,600 nautical miles (4,100 statute miles or 6,700 km).

Due to the high weight of the fuel required for the long oceanic flights (with no options available for en-route refueling), when taken into consideration with the length of the flight itself, the payloads on the flights were severely limited. The average load on each flight was just three passengers and 159lbs (69kg) of essential, and often sensitive, mail.

Catalina flying boats were the ideal aircraft with their ability to fly for over 24 continuous hours. Photo: Tony Hisgett via Wikimedia Commons

The Catalinas regularly flew for over 27 hours between Australia and Ceylon, and often the flight would take up to 33 hours due to adverse headwinds on the route. Qantas gave the official name of the ‘Kangaroo Service’ route. The service also marked the first time that Qantas’s now-famous ‘Flying Kangaroo’ logo was used on the side of an aircraft.

The Double Sunrise Catalinas made 271 crossing in total between 1943 and 1945. In 1944, Qantas augmented the aircraft deployed on the route with converted Consolidated Liberator bomber aircraft. In 1945, both types were eventually replaced by Avro Lancastrians – wartime Avro Lancaster bombers that had been converted into passenger-carrying roles.

The five Catalinas deployed on the flights were retired from service and, as required by the original contract with the UK Air Ministry, were scrapped by scuttling (being deliberately sunk).

Secret Order of the Double Sunrise

All passengers who were lucky enough to experience the Double Sunrise flights were given a certificate depicting an image of one of the Catalinas used on the flights and proclaiming them as members of the ‘The ‘Secret Order of the Double Sunrise’. The certificates evidenced that the holder was one of the few people in history who had been airborne for more than 24 hours.

As a nice touch and as a nod to the historical nature and pioneering spirit of its Double Sunrise operation, Qantas’ plan for non-stop flights between Australia and London which are due to commence in 2025, was given and still has the working name of ‘Project Sunrise‘.

Perhaps even more touching is that everyone onboard the airline’s first non-stop route-proving flight between Sydney and London operated by a Boeing 787 Dreamliner back in 2019 was given a replica certificate to those first handed out on the Catalinas. The certificates proclaimed that the few privileged passengers onboard had also joined the Secret Order of the Double Sunrise – just like those who had done so and gone before them many years previously.

Qantas flight QF7879 lands at Sydney Airport on November 15, 2019, after 19 hours and 19 minutes in the air. Photo: David Gray/Getty Images

Specialist aircraft

Consolidated_PBY_Catalina_4_(7509920632)

The five Catalinas deployed on the flights were retired from service and, as required by the original contract with the UK Air Ministry, were scrapped by scuttling (being deliberately sunk).