Bring a good book, this is going to be a long flight.
Cathay Pacific will launch the first non-stop service from Hong Kong to New York on July 1, significantly cutting the present journey time. The amount of time saved will vary depending on the strength of the prevailing winds. Eastbound flights will be up to 4hrs 30mins shorter. In normal weather conditions westbound passengers will save a maximum of 2hrs 45mins. The airline will use the ultra-long-haul Airbus A340-600, following a northern polar route. The aircraft will be fitted with 60 business-class seats - more than usual on other routes. Summer services will leave Hong Kong daily at 10.15am, arriving at 2.05pm. Flights from Kennedy airport will depart at 3.55pm and arrive at 8.10pm the following day. Winter schedules will differ slightly. Cathay will continue to operate its existing service to New York via Vancouver.
Portland has a Lufthansa line direct to Frankfurt, Germany. It's an 11-hour flight, I think. But the rates were incredibly low. A round-trip was just $300. I don't know if that was just a promotional rate or not, but that seemed damned cheap to fly halfway across the world.
