A350 Deliveries and Routes

[SQfanatic]

I think MAN should be split from MUC as the current offering is clearly not attractive to SE Asian customers catching SQ - they might be better off catching EK, EY or CX instead.

Moreover, I wonder if CX can start MAD themselves, why SQ is struggling to make BCN 4x weekly as a standalone direct sector? If BCN is not the best port to go, perhaps they can switch to MAD instead?

Finally, rather to launch a JV with Air France and have to deal with the restrictions within Star Alliance, why SQ don't retire 1 or 2 A380s for a more frequent A350 service to CDG and ZRH? In today's aviation world, I think frequency, rather than capacity is the key to success. Therefore I would encourage SQ to seriously ditch some more A380s in replacement of A350s to Europe to beat Cathay Pacific.

You are right it is best to have more frequency than capacity. I was eyeing at both CDG and ZRH where they have only been using the A380 with the 2006 products for several months. They could have benefitted from maybe a double daily 77WR like they did when they first received 77W aircraft, and when the A380 came, only 1 daily flight.

They could seriously go for A350's. Again a good idea but maybe they can temporarily use a 77WR twice daily for those routes until unless more A350's come giving breathing room to use them on those routes.

[SQKevin]

9V-SMD has just completed its CAF (Customer Acceptance Flight).

[SQKevin]

9V-SMD has just taken off on her Delivery Flight to Changi as SQ8895. She will arrive at Changi at about 10am tomorrow morning.

[SQ228]

Excellent! No.4 all ready for DUS.

If only they'd started the DUS flights a fortnight earlier, I'd have been on the first return flight and this first departure out of DUS...

But I now have my first A350 flight booked before the end of the year.

[fone]

I understand that there are not many of these birds around and probably few here have flown the A350. Just like to check if anyone with any advice on where is best to sit on the A350?

I just got 4 J savers for next year June flight on the non-stop to SFO. 2 adults and 2 young children and 1 infant (lap infant). Currently got them to assign us 19AD/20AD. Thinking is so that we have easy access to the children if required, compared to two middle seats where we need to go through the galley to help them.

I've not flown on SQ J long haul (yet), only on the regional J and the old 747 F. I know the seats are wide compared to other airline's J seats. Are they wide for 1 adult plus 1 infant? Or is the bassinet preferred? How likely are all 4 bassinet seats to be occupied, such that I'd have to give up one (since I currently hold 2)? I can see from the seat map that 20A is start of the wing, is it hard to see out from there?

I believe J are J seats, without too much difference around the plane, especially if travelling alone. Just that travelling with kids would require us to help them quite a bit. Furthermore, this far out from the flight, most of the seats are empty, so we could select any combination we need now.

[alian]

I understand that there are not many of these birds around and probably few here have flown the A350. Just like to check if anyone with any advice on where is best to sit on the A350?

I just got 4 J savers for next year June flight on the non-stop to SFO. 2 adults and 2 young children and 1 infant (lap infant). Currently got them to assign us 19AD/20AD. Thinking is so that we have easy access to the children if required, compared to two middle seats where we need to go through the galley to help them.

I've not flown on SQ J long haul (yet), only on the regional J and the old 747 F. I know the seats are wide compared to other airline's J seats. Are they wide for 1 adult plus 1 infant? Or is the bassinet preferred? How likely are all 4 bassinet seats to be occupied, such that I'd have to give up one (since I currently hold 2)? I can see from the seat map that 20A is start of the wing, is it hard to see out from there?

I believe J are J seats, without too much difference around the plane, especially if travelling alone. Just that travelling with kids would require us to help them quite a bit. Furthermore, this far out from the flight, most of the seats are empty, so we could select any combination we need now.

Hi I've done the A350 in J previously. I think you've got a pretty good set up of 19/20 A/D seating as this provides you with good access to assist the kids as well as a bulkhead option for the infant.

Have a great trip and Safe travels

[SQMilan]

Here in Milan Singapore Airlines announced few days ago that it will introduce PE from Milan soon. Please, could anyone remind me how many A350s Singapore Airlines is expecting to have in its fleet by the end of the year? Thank you.

[SQKevin]

Here in Milan Singapore Airlines announced few days ago that it will introduce PE from Milan soon. Please, could anyone remind me how many A350s Singapore Airlines is expecting to have in its fleet by the end of the year? Thank you.

Officially, SQ is supposed to have 11 A350s by the end of the year. There is no telling if Airbus can keep to it's planned delivery target of 50 A350s for 2016 so, 11 A350s for SQ is not likely. So far 13 A350s have been delivered this year with 37 to go for the remaining 6 months of the year. There are currently about 50 A350s on the FAL and Flight Line. So it's anyone's guess if the target can be met.

9V-SME is due for delivery by the end of July. The next 3 (SMF, SMG, SMH) are assembled & parked outdoors presumably waiting for a slot in the paint hanger. SMI is in Station 40, not fully assembled while parts are only arriving for SMJ. The various component parts for #10 & 11 (SMK & SML) are not even in Toulouse. Unless production is ramped up at a frantic pace, SQ may only have 7 or 8 at best by the end of 2016. We could be proved wrong, though.

[SQMilan]

Officially, SQ is supposed to have 11 A350s by the end of the year. There is no telling if Airbus can keep to it's planned delivery target of 50 A350s for 2016 so, 11 A350s for SQ is not likely. So far 13 A350s have been delivered this year with 37 to go for the remaining 6 months of the year. There are currently about 50 A350s on the FAL and Flight Line. So it's anyone's guess if the target can be met.

9V-SME is due for delivery by the end of July. The next 3 (SMF, SMG, SMH) are assembled & parked outdoors presumably waiting for a slot in the paint hanger. SMI is in Station 40, not fully assembled while parts are only arriving for SMJ. The various component parts for #10 & 11 (SMK & SML) are not even in Toulouse. Unless production is ramped up at a frantic pace, SQ may only have 7 or 8 at best by the end of 2016. We could be proved wrong, though.

Thank you very much. In this case it could be that Milan will get A350 (and I hope daily and without BCN service) in early 2017. For the time being there's no plenty of room to use A350s on many routes.

[Dobbo]

Thank you very much. In this case it could be that Milan will get A350 (and I hope daily and without BCN service) in early 2017. For the time being there's no plenty of room to use A350s on many routes.

It could be that PE is on one of the refurbished/new B77Ws?

[SQMilan]

It could be that PE is on one of the refurbished/new B77Ws?

It could be, they have officially announced the PE and rumoured the A350. The seat capacity is about the same, but the 77WR has 4 First Class seats. Probably they will not sell those seats, or sell them as Business Class.

[Dobbo]

It could be, they have officially announced the PE and rumoured the A350. The seat capacity is about the same, but the 77WR has 4 First Class seats. Probably they will not sell those seats, or sell them as Business Class.

Maybe, it sounds like each and every european route is expecting an A350, but the numbers don't add up and some must use the larger aircraft.

[SQ228]

They've really not said yet how they plan to clean up the mess after they withdraw from GRU. The whole MXP/BCN situation has to be looked at as a whole. MXP seems to have enough demand to keep using 77W craft while they wait for A350s but BCN alone I doubt would have enough demand.

Schedules have to be completely overhauled for BCN and until an official announcement is made, everything is just pure speculation.

[SQ36]

Yes, they really need to sort BCN out. Don't think loads are sufficient to sustain BCN as a standalone, wonder if they will attempt another tag (to Miami?) or introduce a stopover (make Athens year-round?).

[jaywell]

When will the regionally-configured A350s start to be delivered?