LATAM resumed its longest flight on the Santiago-Melbourne route on September 1st, spanning over eleven thousand kilometers.
The new operation in Australia, which had been suspended since April 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will facilitate passenger traffic between that city and South America. LATAM will operate three times a week with Boeing 787-9 aircraft capable of carrying 300 passengers on 14-hour and 35-minute flights. Until now, LATAM had only resumed the Santiago-Auckland-Sydney route.
«LATAM is the only airline in South America that offers two flight options between our region and Australia. In addition to the operation we carry out daily to the Australian main city via Santiago and Auckland, we will now have a Brazil-Melbourne connection with a total duration of 22 hours«, explains Aline Mafra, LATAM Brasil’s Sales and Marketing Director, in statements published by our affiliated media in Brazil, Aeroin. «No airline connects Brazil with the world like LATAM, and this is no different in the case of Australia, a multicultural destination highly sought after by tourists and for work and study opportunities«, she added.
LATAM’s flights to Melbourne take off from Santiago on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 0:55 (local time) and land at the destination at 5:30 (local time) the following day. In the reverse direction, they take off from Melbourne on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays at 12:25 (local time), landing in Santiago at 11:20 on the same day.
The impact in Melbourne
According to the Victoria government, the over 47,200 annual seats that LATAM will provide in the state will generate over AUD 68.5 million for the local economy, contributing to the creation of around 330 jobs in the aviation and tourism sectors.
«There are many opportunities in South America for Victoria businesses in industries such as agri-food, energy, and mining«, they highlighted, noting that the flights will also add more than 1,560 tons of cargo capacity in a market valued at AUD 2.8 billion in 2021-2022.
In 2019, more than 80,000 tourists arrived in Victoria from Latin America, contributing AUD 242 million to the local economy. The state is also a popular destination among Latin American students, with over 14,000 enrolled in educational institutions in Victoria in the 2022 period.
The ten longest routes of LATAM Airlines
Considering the great circle mapdistance, these are currently the longest routes operated by LATAM Airlines:
- Santiago – Melbourne: 11,320 kilometers (Boeing 787-9)
- Santiago – Madrid: 10,697 kilometers (Boeing 787-9)
- Sao Paulo – Los Angeles: 9,907 kilometers (Boeing 777-300)
- Sao Paulo – Frankfurt: 9,777 kilometers (Boeing 777-300)
- Santiago – Auckland: 9,674 kilometers (Boeing 787-9)
- Lima – Madrid: 9,519 kilometers (Boeing 787-9)
- Sao Paulo – Milan: 9,465 kilometers (Boeing 777-300)
- Sao Paulo – London: 9,436 kilometers (Boeing 777-300)
- Sao Paulo – Rome: 9,413 kilometers (Boeing 777-300)
- Sao Paulo – Paris: 9,381 kilometers (Boeing 787-9).
The flight time can vary depending on the direction of the route and the impact of the winds. Thus, for example, from Santiago to Melbourne the scheduled time is 14 hours and 35 minutes, while from Melbourne to Santiago it is 12 hours and 55 minutes.
