Come 11 Oct 2018, Singapore Airlines will once again reclaim the title of operating the world’s longest fight between Singapore and Newark. For those who still recall, Singapore Airlines used to operate this same route, but with the A340-500 aircraft, that proved to be uneconomical. The route was discontinued in 2013 as a result.
This time, Singapore Airlines will operate the A350-900ULR, which is far more efficient. Additionally, Singapore Airlines is the launch customer of this aircraft, and will take delivery of the first aircraft in September.
The aircraft will be configured with 67 Business Class seats, and 94 Premium Economy seats, offering passengers with unrivalled comfort for this marathon flight. This is in stark contrast to the all-Business A340-500 that used to ply the route. Apparently, it was difficult to fill those seats, so the current two-class configuration on board the A350-900ULR should serve the airline well.
Singapore Airlines will also soon announce more details on the non-stop Singapore-Los Angeles route, which will also deploy the A350-900ULR aircraft, as well as another much anticipated non-stop route to the North American continent. Singapore Airlines used to operate flights to Vancouver, Chicago, Las Vegas and Honolulu, so unless the yields for these destinations have changed drastically over the years, we might be seeing a completely new destination to be served by the A350-900ULR in the near future.