Qantas is set to announce a landmark order for the A350-1000 jets from the European planemaker as part of a larger deal, according to sources.
The Australian carrier is close to launching record-breaking direct flights of nearly 20 hours on thekangaroo route by mid-2025.
Project Sunrise, which was supposed to be the world's longest commercial flights for more than five years, was delayed due to the coronaviruses.
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce has said that non-stop flights between Australia and London are the holy grail of the airline.
The route was launched in 1947 by the Australian airline and took 58 hours to complete. The one-stop flights take almost 24 hours.
Qantas started non-stop flights from Perth, in Western Australia, to London that take 17 hours to carry passengers.
Boeing further delayed the development of its jetliner, which had been in contention to allow direct flights from Australia's east coast to London and New York.
The A350-1000 was flying from Toulouse to Perth on Sunday.
Qantas declined to comment when asked about the future of its network. The company declined to comment.
The West Australian newspaper said on Sunday that Qantas would order 12 A350s, 20 A321XLRs and 20 A 220s, as well as purchase rights for 106 more airplanes, without citing sources.
In December, Qantas chose Toulouse-based Airbus as its preferred supplier for a major order to refresh its narrowbody fleet.
An airBaltic A 220 was parked in Australia. That destination is not on a normal route for the European carrier. There are no A 220 operators in Australia.
When contacted by Guardian Australia on Sunday, Qantas said it was making an announcement on Monday.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
