How long is the flight from MEL to WLG?

About 3 h 50 min gate to gate, estimated from the distance. Real times depend on winds and the routing.

What is the time difference between Melbourne and Wellington?

Wellington is 2 h ahead of Melbourne.

How much EU261 compensation is a delay on MEL–WLG worth?

Neither EU261 nor UK261 applies: the route neither starts nor ends in the EU, EEA, Switzerland or the UK.

How much CO2 does a flight from MEL to WLG emit?

About 326 kg CO2e per economy passenger one way, including the extra warming effect of flying high (193 kg without it), using the UK government's 2026 conversion factors.

AirportMiles

Melbourne (MEL) – Wellington (WLG)

Flights on Google Skyscanner

Distance, flight time and the airlines that fly it, from open data.

Distance: 2,596 km; 1,613 mi · 1,402 nm
Flight time: 3 h 50 min; Estimate from distance
Time difference: 2 h
CO2 per passenger: 326 kg; One way, economy, incl. RF (193 kg CO2 only)
Passengers / year: 204,870; Jul 2025 – Jun 2026 · +0.3%
Flights / week: —; Not in this source
Seats filled: —
Airlines nonstop: —; Not named in this source

Traffic: BITRE (Australia), international airline activity by city pair, Jul 2025 – Jun 2026. BITRE reports cities, not airports: the Melbourne figures can include Avalon (AVV). Distance: WGS-84 ellipsoid. CO2: UK DESNZ 2026 factors. Sources

Shortest path over the earth's surface (great circle). Real flights bend around weather, winds and airspace.

The way there

Heading from MEL: 108°
Heading from WLG: 269°
Halfway point: -40.48, 159.42
Great-circle km: 2,590 km (sphere, for EU261)
Clocks: Wellington is 2 h ahead of Melbourne

The estimate for a route without real times is 3 h 50 min; how it is worked out is on Sources.

Passengers per month, both directions (Jul 2025 – Jun 2026)Busiest: December 2025: 20,381 passengers

Show as a table

Month	Passengers
Jul 2025	15,281
Aug 2025	14,523
Sep 2025	16,729
Oct 2025	19,081
Nov 2025	18,413
Dec 2025	20,381
Jan 2026	20,199
Feb 2026	16,476
Mar 2026	19,473
Apr 2026	18,512
May 2026	13,415
Jun 2026	12,387

Delay compensation (EU261 / UK261)

Measured by great-circle distance: 2,590 km.

Neither EU261 nor UK261 covers this route: it neither starts nor ends in the EU, EEA, Switzerland or the UK. Other countries have their own rules (for example Canada's APPR or Brazil's ANAC rules).

Also owed for a cancellation with less than 14 days' notice or denied boarding. Not owed for extraordinary circumstances. On a connection, the distance to the final destination counts. From 23 October 2027 the EU's Regulation 2026/2202 applies; it keeps these amounts (what changes in 2027). Information, not legal advice.

Every airport pair between Melbourne and Wellington

	WLG
MEL	2,596
MEB	2,589
MBW	2,564
AVV	2,615

Kilometres. Linked numbers have a page of their own. All Melbourne airports

More routes from MEL

Route	To	Distance	Passengers / year
MEL → SYD	Sydney, Australia	706 km	8,091,178
MEL → BNE	Brisbane, Australia	1,379 km	3,691,322
MEL → ADL	Adelaide, Australia	642 km	2,409,362
MEL → OOL	Gold Coast, Australia	1,328 km	2,216,157
MEL → PER	Perth, Australia	2,706 km	2,113,102
MEL → SIN	Singapore, Singapore	6,024 km	1,739,044
MEL → HBA	Hobart, Australia	617 km	1,457,845
MEL → DPS	Denpasar, Indonesia	4,376 km	1,146,291
MEL → AKL	Auckland, New Zealand	2,643 km	1,091,173
MEL → CBR	Canberra, Australia	470 km	967,607

More routes from WLG

Route	To	Distance	Passengers / year
WLG → SYD	Sydney, Australia	2,232 km	255,238
WLG → BNE	Brisbane, Australia	2,512 km	183,536
WLG → OOL	Gold Coast, Australia	2,425 km	61,319

Questions

Melbourne (MEL) and Wellington (WLG) are 2,596 km (1,613 miles, 1,402 nautical miles) apart, measured along the shortest path over the earth's surface.