Airbus Updates No.3647

 

ANOTHER SINGAPORE A380 DEPARTS ALICE SPRINGS

A third Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 has this week exited long-term storage and landed back to Singapore.

9V-SKT took off from Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport at 12:28pm local time on Thursday and touched down at Singapore’s Changi Airport just after 5pm local time, after completing the nearly eight hour journey.

It comes after Singapore Airlines announced it will bring its Airbus A380s back into service on select flights between Singapore and London from mid-November, and on flights between Sydney and Singapore from 1 December.

9V-SKT had previously been parked in the Alice Springs “boneyard” since April 2020, however it was ferried to Sydney on Tuesday ahead of its planned return to Singapore.

The aircraft departed Alice Springs at 10:34am local time on Tuesday, landing at Sydney three hours and six minutes later, at 3pm.

It is the third A380 to make its way from long-term storage in the Australian desert back to Singapore ahead of a planned return to passenger service in recent months.

The first to be resurrected was 9V-SKQ, which departed the Alice Springs storage facility in February, followed by 9V-SKW, which followed in July.

While Singapore Airlines, the launch customer for the superjumbo, is set to retire seven of its A380s, it will crucially keep 12 in service.

As of earlier this month, the airline had already reinstated three of its A380s – 9V-SKU, -SKV and -SKM – on services connecting Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, and has announced plans to bring the superjumbo back online for routes to London and Sydney in the coming weeks.

“Once Australia’s border restrictions are lifted, I am sure Australians will relish the opportunity to experience all the comforts of our A380 as they wing their way from Singapore to London,” said Louis Arul, Singapore Airlines vice-president, southwest Pacific.

“Our award-winning digital initiatives, as well as our industry-leading health and safety measures, will ensure Australians travel in comfort and safety as they reunite with family and friends.”

It comes after the first Qantas A380 to return to Australia from storage finally touched down in Sydney after nearly 19 hours in the air, ahead of its planned return to service in 2022.

VH-OQB was ferried from a maintenance facility in Dresden to Sydney earlier this month, finally landing at Sydney Kingsford on 9 November after taking the scenic route via Sydney Harbour.

It is the first time VH-OQB has seen Australian shores since it was first ferried to LAX on 26 March 2020, in the early days of the pandemic.

Qantas is expected to bring OQB back into service on its Sydney-LAX route by April 2022, while its second superjumbo will return by July.

Five of the airlines A380s are expected to be back up and running for passengers by the end of 2022 on routes to LA and London, while the remainder of the fleet will be reintroduced gradually by the end of 2023.

Like Singapore, Qantas will not be bringing its entire A380 fleet back into service, with the impact of the pandemic resulting in the airline fast-tracking the retirement of two of its 12 superjumbos.

The decision marks the beginning of the end of Qantas’ iconic A380 fleet, following the decided end of the Airbus A380 program, as Airbus nears delivery of its last-ever A380 to Emirates.

Airbus Updates No.3538

 Singapore Airlines Removes Another Airbus A380 From Storage

Singapore Airlines has taken yet another Airbus A380 out of long-term storage in Alice Springs. The jet was first flown to Sydney for maintenance on September 1st and more recently flew back to home base at Singapore Changi. This is the third aircraft to fly out of Alice Springs in 2021, giving us more hope that the superjumbo will be back in service soon.

Singapore Airlines has 12 Airbus A380s in its fleet. Five jets remain in Alice Springs. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Back home to Changi

The Singapore Airlines A380 registered 9V-SKY (MSN 253) left Alice Springs at 11:39 local time on September 1st, bound for initial maintenance at Sydney airport. Flying at 25,000 feet, the aircraft reached Sydney at approximately 15:41.

The aircraft first departed long-term storage at Alice Springs on September 1st. Photo: RadarBox.com

After spending the entirety of September 2nd in Sydney, 9V-SKY departed for Singapore Changi this morning, September 3rd, at 12:45 local time. At the time of this article’s publication, the aircraft is still en route to SIN, flying over Queensland and the waters of the Arafura Sea. The jet is due to arrive at its destination at 18:17 after flying for approximately seven and a half hours.

The third A380 removed from storage in 2021

Before 9V-SKY’s flight, we already had two superjumbos fly out of Alice Springs:

• 9V-SKQ was reactivated in late February 2021, first stopping in Sydney.
• 9V-SKW left Alice Springs on July 28th for Sydney before flying back to Singapore on July 30th.

This continued ‘repatriation’ of Singapore Airlines’ A380s is indeed quite promising, with the airline scheduling the type to fly sometime this fall.

As of late May, Singapore Airlines had scheduled A380 flights from October 31st. Photo: Getty Images.

Is a travel boom on the horizon?

Commenting on the movement in late July, a Singapore Airlines spokesperson said,

“This movement is part of the ongoing management of our fleet, ensuring we remain nimble, flexible, and prepared to deploy capacity to markets as the demand warrants. The aircraft’s return to Singapore will allow for scheduled maintenance to be conducted.”

Unfortunately, the airline’s official statement doesn’t exactly promise a return to service. However, its statement on fleet agility and flexibility makes sense considering the fact that Singapore is hoping to allow quarantine-free travel for the fully vaccinated in the very near future.

Reporting on a statement made by the Finance Minister in mid-August, Reuters notes that the country will establish travel corridors with other countries or regions where the virus is under control.

Up until recently, the country had been pushing for a COVID-zero strategy, working hard to essentially eradicate the virus from the small city-state (New Zealand has been the model country for this, even activating a lockdown after the detection of a single case). However, the quest for COVID-zero has had a devastating impact on the small country’s economy. With rising vaccination rates, it’s now pivoting and reconsidering how it might live with COVID.

Therefore, if borders open up to the fully vaccinated, 9V-SKY and other A380s belonging to Singapore Airlines may soon find themselves flying regular passengers on scheduled commercial flights.

Airbus Updates No.3483

 

Airbus A320	-271N	10560		XA-VSA	Volaris	delivery 27jul21 TLS-KEF-YQX-MEX, all white	ex F-WWDN
Airbus A320	-251N	10562		B-325C	Spring Airlines	delivery 29-30jul21 TLS-NQZ-TSN, F-reg	ex F-WWIY
Airbus A321	-231	1024		B-HTE	Cathay Dragon	ferried by lessor 26-27jul21 HKG-CTS-ANC-MZJ	ex D-AVZD
Airbus A321	-211	3749		9H-ZTA	Titan Airways Malta	air-test 22jul21 at MLA, seen regd 28jul21, all white prior transfer	ex G-POWV
Airbus A321	-231	6009		OE-IZR	APF 4 Projekt Nr. 7A GmbH	regd 28jul21, parked at DGX	ex D-AAAU
Airbus A321	-211	6861		N747AV	Avianca Colombia	ferried 21jul21 BOG-LAL, basic cs on return to lessor	ex D-AVXO
Airbus A321	-251N	7945		N7945	AerCap	ferried 23jul21 GYR-AMA for paint prior delivery to Fly Play	ex XA-NEO
Airbus A321	-271N	10026		B-30FS	Sichuan Airlines	delivery 27jul21 TSN-CTU	ex B-005D
Airbus A321	-271N	10249		B-322T	Sichuan Airlines	delivery 29jul21 XFW-NQZ-TSN, D-reg	ex D-AVXX
Airbus A321	-271N	10305		SX-NAD	Aegean Airlines	delivery 29jul21 XFW-ATH	ex D-AZAG
Airbus A321	-251NX	10532		CC-DCA	Sky Airline	delivery 27-28jul21 XFW-KEF-MIA-SCL	ex D-AYAR
Airbus A321	-251NX	10595		VP-BXT	Aeroflot	delivery 24ju21 XFW-SVO	ex D-AVZC
Airbus A330	-302	623		VP-CNV	Castlelake	ferried 28jul21 NOC-EGBP	ex A7-AEA
Airbus A330	-203	1161		PH-AOM	KLM Royal Dutch Airlines	ferried 26jul21 AMS-WOE, basic cs	ex F-WWKP
Airbus A330	-343	1607		HZ-NE24	Flynas	in full cs at ISL 21ju21, dual reg prior delivery	ex TC-LOJ
Airbus A340	-313	207		9H-	AirHub Airlines	delivery 27jul21 KBL-SQQ, YA-reg	ex YA-WTA
Airbus A350	-941	313		PR-XTL	Latam Brasil	ferried 28jul21 GRU-VCV, for Delta Air Lines	ex A7-AQC
Airbus A350	-1041	330		A6-XWC	Etihad Airways	delivery 23jul21 BOD-AUH, F-reg	ex F-WXAC
Airbus A380	-841	251		9V-SKW	Singapore Airlines	ferried 28jul21 ASP-SYD prior ferry to SIN in aug21	ex F-WWSS
Airbus Canada A220	-300	55106		F-OLAV	Air Austral	onward delivery 28judelivery 28jul21 YMX-YQM-CDG (+ 55116 F-OMER)	ex C-FOVH

Airbus Updates No.2627

Airbus A330	-243	737		A6-EYJ	Etihad Airways	ferried 21apr20 LETL-AUH after storage	ex F-WWYB
Airbus A330	-343	1103		F-HROK	Corsair International	in full cs at PVG 20apr20, VQ-reg prior delivery	ex VQ-BEL
Airbus A330	-243	1249		VP-CGI	TC Skyward Aviation Ireland	regd 17apr20, parked at NQY	ex ZS-SXV
Airbus A330	-243	1498		G-VYGK	Air Tanker	feried 16apr20 SNN-BZZ after paint into all white	ex EC-330
Airbus A340	-313	246		F-GLZO	Air France	Joon cs, ferried 24apr20 CDG-LDE, for part-out & scrap
Airbus A340	-642	622		9H-EAL	European Skybus	first in svc 26apr20 BOH-TSN with large “Thank You NHS” titles	ex G-VNAP
Airbus A380	-861	43		F-HPJC	Air France	ferried 23apr20 AUH-LDE for storage	ex F-WWAB
Airbus A380	-861	64		F-HPJF	Air France	ferried 25apr20 CDG-LETL for onward storage (+ 67 F-HPJG)	ex F-WWAU
Airbus A380	-841	92		9V-SKT	Singapore Airlines	ferried 26apr20 SIN-ASP for onward storage (+ 251 9V-SKW,+ 253 9V-SKY,+ 255 9V-SKZ)	ex F-WWSA

Airbus Updates No.2625

SIA to move a fifth of A380 fleet to desert storage

Singapore Airlines (SIA) will shift four Airbus A380s to long-term storage at Alice Springs airport in central Australia.

The first of four double-deckers arrived on 26 April, according to a Facebook post by Alice Springs airport; the jets will be stored at Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage.

On 23 March, SIA announced that it would ground 138 of 147 aircraft - including 19 A380s - owing to the collapse in passenger demand stemming from the coronavirus crisis.

The majority of SIA’s fleet is stored at Singapore’s Changi airport, alongside aircraft from its Silkair and Scoot units. 

The dry, desert conditions of Alice Springs are a better for storing aircraft than the humid, tropical environment of Southeast Asia. 

According to Cirium fleets data, just two of the 66 A380s operated by Asia-Pacific airlines are in service. These aircraft are operated by China Southern Airlines.

The collapse in air travel demand and the uncertainty about the industry’s recovery could accelerate the retirement of larger types such as the A380 and Boeing 747-400.