Treading on unconventional and unseen routes is not really “the thing” for many commercial aeroplanes, mainly because they want to keep it simple and safe. But an Indian aeroplane has defied all odds as they flew a world record distance in shortest ever time using an untraditional path.
Air India’s flight AI173 covered the mammoth 15,300 km distance from New Delhi to San Francisco using the trans-Pacific route rather than the usual Atlantic route. Although the Pacific route is an additional 1,400 km longer in length, the non-stop flight completed the journey in a world record timing of 14 hours and 30 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBJFfFFluxM&feature=youtu.be
The trans-Pacific route theoretically should consume more fuel due to the extra distance, but flying eastwards meant flying with the flow of the wind rather than against it, helping it reach the destination earlier. In the Atlantic route, the aeroplanes have to face the wind head-on, meaning it consumes more time and fuel to reach the same destination.