Singapore Airlines unveil luxurious A380 redesign
Swivel chair? Office desk? Double bed? Singapore Airlines is ramping up its push into the luxury travel market.
Singapore Airlines is ramping up its push into the luxury travel market by spending $US850 million to redesign its global A380 aircraft fleet.
The new interior designs reduce the number of first class suites from 12 to 6 and the planes will now be able to carry 471 passengers.
The revamped seating pattern is an increase from Singapore Airline’s current configuration of 441 passengers on some flights and 379 on others.
Singapore Airlines will take delivery of five new A380s over the next few weeks and the first revamped cabin will be flown to Sydney on December 18 as flight SQ221.
The Singapore to Sydney route is one of the airline’s most popular flights and was selected because it was the route for the first commercial A380 flight ten years ago.
In Singapore, the airline’s chief executive Goh Choon Phong said the redesigned cabin was the result of four years consultation and research.
Alongside the first class suite, there will be 78 business class seats on the upper deck, 44 premium economy seats and 343 economy seats on the main deck.
The first class suites will move to the A380s upper deck and have a 1-1 cabin configuration.
A swivel chair, office desk and flat bed feature in the suites which were created by specialised French aircraft interior designer Pierejean Design Studio.
The leather chair has a swivel capability of 135 to 270 degrees and a 45 degree recline.
The side-by-side cabins can convert into a double bed for travelling couples and Singapore Airlines has not installed showers or a bar like Emirates and its rivals.
The business class cabin has a 25 inch seat width and reclines into a 78 inch flat bed, unlike the airline’s current design where the seat back is pulled forward to create the bed.
The centre seats can also create a double bed.
Singapore Airlines new A380 will also carry a new high speed Wi-Fi service. Each of the four classes on board the plane will have touch screen televisions which means hand sets will be taken out.
The business class seats will have a 50 inch seat pitch, while premium economy will be 38 inches and economy 32 inches.
Sigapore’s redesigned premium economy will have a seating configuration of 2-4-2 while the economy class will be 3-4-3.
Mr Goh said the redesign was ordered to help Singapore Airlines maintain its current market share which is under threat from its global rivals, especially in the Middle East. He said he was confident the design had a ‘wow factor’ that would attract new customers and lure returning customers.
Prices on the new flights will remain the same and the airline does not expect to change the charges anytime soon.
Australian chef Matt Moran is on Singapore Airline’s international culinary panel which features eight of the world’s best chefs.
The carrier is also considered the world’s only airline to serve Krug and Dom Perignon in tandem in its first class suites.
Scott Murdoch travelled as a guest of Singapore Airlines
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