A 2013 tracking study found that common swifts (Apus apus, the same species that holds the level-flight speed record) can remain continuously airborne for up to 10 months at a stretch outside the breeding season, landing only to nest — among the longest confirmed continuous flight periods of any bird, with the animal apparently able to sleep in short bursts while gliding.
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A 2013 tracking study found that common swifts (Apus apus, the same species that holds the level-flight speed record) can remain continuously airborne for up to 10 months at a stretch outside the breeding season, landing only to nest — among the longest confirmed continuous flight periods of any bird, with the animal apparently able to sleep in short bursts while gliding.
The longest confirmed period a bird has been tracked remaining continuously airborne, including sleeping in flight, without landing.
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Permanent ID limitsregistry.com/limits/LR-ALPINE-SWIFT-LONGEST-CONTINUOUS-FLIGHT
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Limits Registry. LR-ALPINE-SWIFT-LONGEST-CONTINUOUS-FLIGHT. Longest continuous time airborne by a bird. 2026.