Gone with the wind
Thanks to Storm Ciara, several airlines operating on the North Atlantic route reported a night of speed records. With 5:13, a B787 of Norwegian chronicled the fastest ever flight between New York and London.
According to Flightradar24, British Airways set a new subsonic commercial aircraft speed record on 9 February 2020 with the BA112 landing 4:56 after departing. Accomplished with a B747-400, the flight took advantage of a well-placed and strong jet stream to reach London in under 5 hours.
Flightradar24 adds that Virgin Atlantic also beat the previous record with an A350, VS46 in 4:59 and VS4 in 4:57, while the airline itself claims to have flown the distance in only 4:47 – and to have consumed 22 t less fuel than BA’s four-engaged aircraft. (ah)