25 Interesting And Fun Aviation Facts You Never Knew

10 December 2018
Read Time: 2.1 mins
Look up the hashtag #avgeek on Twitter or Instagram and you'll see that there's a world filled with airline and aviation enthusiasts. Call it a hobby, an obsession or anything in between, but this is one interest group whose reach has swelled beyond the borders for a global reach and who can’t get enough of the aviation fun facts. 
 
 
We’ve come up with a list of cool and quirky aviation facts that may surprise even the biggest aviation buff, and help with any future aviation trivia. Did you know…
 

1. 1919

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is the world's oldest airline, established in 1919.
 

2. 1920

Qantas is the world's second oldest airline, established in 1920.
 

3.USD$40,000

In 1987 American Airlines saved $40,000 by removing one olive from each salad served in first class.
 

4. 37 seconds

An aircraft takes off or lands every 37 seconds at Chicago O’Hare's International Airport.
 

5. Wingspan

The wing-span of the A380 is longer than the aircraft itself. Wingspan is 80m, the length is 72.7m
 

6. $700 million

Singapore Airlines spends approximately $700 million on food every year and $16 million on wine.
 

7. 1.5 litres

Travelling by air can shed up to 1.5 litres of water from the body during an average 3-hour flight.
 

8. JFK

 John F. Kennedy Airport in New York was originally named Idlewild Airport.
 

9. 10 tons

Lufthansa is the world's largest purchaser of caviar, buying over 10 tons per year.
 

10. 120 feet

The Boeing 747 wing-span (195 feet) is longer than the Wright Brothers first flight of 120ft.
 

11. Check-in

The internet and online check-in were first introduced by Alaska Airlines in 1999.
 

12. 2.4 metres

The winglets on an Airbus A330-200 are the same height as the world's tallest man (2.4m).
 

13. 480,000

Total electricity capacity of a 747-8 can power up to 480,000 32inch flat screen TVs.
 

14. 78 Billion

The world-wide 747 fleet has logged more than 78 billion kilometres, equivalent to 101,500 trips to the moon and back.
 

15. 80%

The 747 family has flown more than 5.6 billion people - equivalent to 80% of the world's population.
 

16. 61,000 people

At any given hour there are over 61,000 people airborne over the USA.
 

17. 70% more

70% of aircraft today are over 70% more fuel-efficient per seat kilometre than jets in the 1960s.
 

18. 1979

Did you know Qantas invented business class in 1979?

19. Longest Flight

Auckland to Doha on Qatar Airways is the world's longest flight by distance at 14,525 kilometres. 
 

20. iPad

By American Airlines switching a pilots paper manuals to iPad they will save  $1.2 million in fuel.
 

21. 240km

The average 747 has between 240-280 kilometres of wiring.
 

22. 30,000

In the USA, over two million passengers board over 30,000 flights each day.
 

23. Meals

Pilots and co-pilots are required to eat different meals in case of food poisoning.
 

24. Taste Buds

About 1/3 of your taste buds are numbed while flying. Maybe that meal was not bland after all?
 

25. 800kmph

A commercial aircraft flies at an average speed of 800 kilometres per hour.


 

Sam Aldenton

Experience Sam's experience

Sam Aldenton is a Flight Centre writer, producer and social media specialist. When she's not off discovering the world’s best pizza (an obsession picked up from her 4-years in New York), she is based in Brisbane, Australia. Follow her adventures on Instagram at @samaaldenton.