Nineteen hours, 9,534 miles and no economy class – the facts and figures behind the world's longest flight

You have to wonder what the ghosts of the Wright brothers are thinking today. The great US aviation pioneers spent most of 1903 bumping frustratedly along sandbanks on the wind-swept coast of North Carolina - before, on December 17, finally managing to lift their baby, the Wright Flyer, off the ground, in what was the first powered flight.

This world-changing achievement lasted for a full 12 seconds and 120ft (37m), at a speed of 6.8 miles per hour. So what Wilbur and Orville (particularly the latter, who was at the controls for that first take-off) would say about today's news would make for a fascinating beyond-the-grave reality TV show. But we can assume they would be astounded - that the industry they effectively started 115 years ago has become so proficient that aircraft can now fly non-stop all the way from Singapore to New York.

For yes, this is the headline. That the world's longest flight - or, indeed, the new world's longest flight - took to the air yesterday afternoon and just touched down.

This being the Singapore Airlines service between Singapore and Newark International in New York. It safely took off from Changi airport at 11.35pm local time (4.35pm UK time) yesterday and, as planned, the 9,534-mile flight was completed in under 19 hours, landing at 5.24am New York time (10.24am UK time).

In fact, it was quite a bit quicker than planned - the total flight time was 17 hours and 25 minutes.

Never mind the Wright brothers being amazed from the vantage point of the afterlife - this is a big deal in the living world too. But what else do we know about this hop from Asia to North America without a pause for breath in Europe. All is revealed here...

The world's longest flight? Again? This is becoming a regular thing, isn't it?

Well, yes. There has been a spate of "oh blimey, how far??!!" flight launches in the very recent past. Skip back just over two years, to March 2016, and the arrival of a direct Emirates service between Dubai and Auckland - 8,823 miles long - was being greeted with identical fanfare.

The applause lasted just 11 months, until February 2017, when Qatar Airways powered up a rival connection from Doha to New Zealand's biggest city - which stole Emirates' thunder by a mere 209 miles (9,032 miles). In your face.

Hang on. I thought there was a new direct flight from London to Australia which ranks as the world's longest. Travel sections like this one banged on about it...

Ah yes, you're right. Well, partially right. You're referring to the Qantas service which links Heathrow to Perth, in Western Australia. It launched in March of this year - and there was a good deal of fuss about it. As it stands, this is the only non-stop service between the UK and Australia, making for a trip of 9,009 miles and around 17 hours. However, it was only ever the world's second longest flight. As of today, it's the third.

So this new Singapore Airlines flight is definitely the longest?

Yep. That figure of 9,534 miles is significant. It makes it the only flight on the market which breaks the 15,000-kilometer mark - 15,344km, to be exact. Which is exciting if stats are your thing. That 9,032-mile Qatar Airways flight equates to a comparatively puny 14,536km. Close, but no cigar. Not that you can smoke cigars on planes anymore.

Hang on again. There's a ring of familiarity here. Singapore. New York. The world's longest flight. Why am I getting a weird feeling of deja vu about this?

Very good. Well remembered. The new Singapore-Newark flight is not very "new" at all. It's more a case of getting the band back together than a classic debut album. This connection has already existed. Singapore Airlines flew it between 2004 and 2013, before cancelling it - amid complaints that the fuel costs made the route too expensive.

So what's changed?

Singapore clearly feels that customer demand for a service which doesn't have to pause en route in, say, Frankfurt or Amsterdam, outweighs any financial worries. Although it also helps that the airline has changed the plane. In the first incarnation of the flight, it used the Airbus A340-500. This resurrection will deploy the Airbus A350-900 ULR.

ULR? Don't blind me with acronyms...

Sorry. It stands for "Ultra-Long-Range". It's a next-generation aircraft - lighter, more efficient. It reputedly uses up to 30 per cent less fuel than predecessors like the A340-500. It's so new that Singapore Airlines is the launch customer - and did not receive the first delivery until September 23. It has bought seven of the planes for its Newark route. No commercial aircraft - made by Airbus or its rival Boeing - can currently fly further.

A thought that has just occurred to me. Which way is the plane going to fly?

An excellent question. The distance between Singapore and New York is pretty much the same - give or take complications such as head- and tail-winds, and weather patterns - whether you take-off in an easterly direction and head across the Pacific, or go west across the Atlantic. You might think that the latter would make more sense, but Singapore Airlines has said that today's launch flight will take the "NOPAC" route.

Oh lord, another acronym. Plain English, please.

Sorry, force of habit. NOPAC means the "North Pacific" route. Which means that today's flight path will soar over the top of Taiwan and Japan, before clipping across Alaska and continuing into Canadian air space, until the Big Apple comes into view.

And this is 19 hours in the air, right? Five hours short of an entire day? Good lord, what will I do with myself for 19 hours in economy?

Ah, well herein lies the catch. Or the reason to be cheerful, depending on your perspective and bank balance. There is no economy cabin on the Singapore-Newark flight. In this brave new world of crossing half the planet in a single bound, there is no room for "cheaper" fares. Singapore Airlines has configured its A350-900 ULRs in such a way that they have only business and premium-economy compartments - 67 seats in the former, 94 in the latter. So that's 161 passengers in total at maximum capacity - which will also help fuel consumption during that final push across Ontario.

Even so, the question remains. What to do for 19 hours?

Well, you could always eat. If you are sitting in premium economy, you can expect to be served three meals. If you are in business, it's two - although business-class passengers also have a flat-bed to sleep in. And that will definitely help pass the time.

Come on. Even three meals translates as being fed every six hours. What am I going to do for the rest of the time?

Well, Singapore Airlines has long prided itself on the quality of its in-flight entertainment system, so you could watch a few films. Admittedly, in 19 hours you could drill quite a long way down into the movie menu. You might even have to go as far as the latest Mark Wahlberg comedy. Alternatively, you could stare out of the window at the coal-black night above the Pacific, and count the minutes one by one.

What if I have someone sitting next to me who likes to make conversation?

Then it's headphones on, because that Mark Wahlberg comedy just got a lot funnier. Have you seen Daddy's Home 2? It isn't very funny at all - as, strangely, shoving Mel Gibson into a Christmas jumper and making him growl his lines does not gold-plated humour make.

Still, it's a much better bet than chatting to a stranger about turbulence.

Is 19 hours in a pressurised plane cabin very good for you?

Well, that's a fine question. And a serious one. According to some research, you are 100 times more likely to catch a cold on a flight, thanks to the likelihood that someone somewhere on the plane is ill - and the fact that you have to breathe the same air as them for the duration of the journey. There is the issue of oxygen deprivation - as a general rule, aircraft cabins are pressurised to roughly 75 per cent of normal atmospheric pressure. This is fine in terms of breathing, but lower levels of oxygen in your blood can leave you feeling dizzy and tired - and can cause headaches. Altitude also plays havoc with your tastebuds. About a third of them become numb on a plane - although you might argue that, with some meals served by airlines, this is no bad thing.

So what should I do to stay healthy?

Oh, you know the drill. Drink plenty of water - your body can be derprived of up to 1.5 litres of water on a three-hour flight. Get up and walk around - don't get so engrossed in all those great Mark Wahlberg comedies that you don't leave your seat. Especially if you're flying for 19 hours. There are more on flight health issues and survival tips here...

OK, fine. So is Ultra-Long-Range flight going to become the norm? And will the Singapore Airlines flight hold the "world's longest" record for long? 

Very possibly yes, and very possibly not, respectively.

If the flight is a commercial success, you can expect other airlines to follow suit. Philippine Airlines will launch a direct flight from Manila to New York (John F. Kennedy) on October 28 - the same date that Air India is due to start a non-stop link between JFK and Mumbai. Air New Zealand will weigh in with a new direct service from Auckland to Chicago on November 30. And Singapore Airlines will add to its route map with a non-stop hop between Singapore and Los Angeles that will take to the heavens on November 2. None of these will be longer than the Singapore-Newark flight (Singapore's link to LA will be 767 miles shorter), but it is surely only a matter of time until the aviation envelope is pushed again.

And then someone really will have to hire a medium and contact the Wright brothers for a quote...