Emirates will begin the longest flight in the world when it flies non-stop to Auckland from March 1, 2016.

The Boeing 777-200LR operating the flight will offer up to approximately 17 tonnes of capacity for perishable goods and dairy products from New Zealand.

The daily flight is scheduled to take just under 16 hours from Dubai to Auckland and 17 hours and 15 minutes in the other direction, according to the airline.

“Operating a non-stop service between Dubai and Auckland has been in our sights for some time, dependent on availability of suitable aircraft as we rapidly expand our global network of destinations, and frequency of flights and capacity on existing routes,” said Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group. “We are particularly delighted that we can now bring this exciting plan to fruition.”

With the new service, Emirates will have five daily flights to New Zealand: the non-stop 777-200LR to Auckland, three A380s to Auckland via Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney respectively, and a 777-300ER to Christchurch via Bangkok and Sydney.

Details of the flight are as follows.