Australian airline Qantas has chosen French Airbus as its supplier for what will be the world's longest airline route, a decision that has put pressure on rival Boeing as another loss of prestige.

The planned flight between Sydney and New York will take almost 20 hours, making it the longest commercial flight in the world.

Two years ago, Qantas hired both Airbus and American archrival Boeing to design a plane that could fly the record distance. Now, the company has finally announced that Airbus will be entrusted with delivering the plane – if Qantas chooses to open the route to the public. The Australian company has test flown the route during the autumn and will decide in March next year whether it will continue the venture.

Qantas writes in a press release that they are in talks with Airbus about possibly ordering 12 aircraft for the route, but no order has yet been placed.

Airbus being awarded the contract is seen as a loss of prestige for Boeing, which has had a tough year after the two fatal accidents with the 737 Max model.

Source: di.se