Singapore Airlines buys big on Airbus: five A380s, 20 more A350s

IN BRIEF | Singapore Airlines has gone on a shopping spree with Airbus, with orders placed for five more second-gen A380 plus another 20 of the new Airbus A350.

The orders come on top of SQ's current fleet of 19 superjumbos and an existing order for 20 A350s, with first deliveries due from 2015.

As part of the deal, Singapore Airlines has handed its order for 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners over to low-cost offshoot Scoot – see our report here.

Airbus expects to roll out the enhanced A380 next year, with British Airways and Emirates as its first customers and Qantas to follow later in the decade.

The souped-up superjumbo will add an extra 190km in range, Airbus executive vice president Tom Williams told Australian Business Traveller earlier this year.

“We’re working on things like weight improvements and trying to squeeze more power out of the engine” Williams said.

David Flynn

David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.