World’s Largest Airliner Enters Commercial Service

25 October 2007

World’s Largest Airliner Enters Commercial Service

The Singapore Airlines A380 enters commercial service today, with its first flight – SQ380 – from Singapore to Sydney, Australia.

The brand new A380 super-jumbo will depart Singapore Changi Airport at 0800hrs and is expected to arrive at Sydney Airport at 1725hrs to a grand welcome ceremony, after a flight of almost seven and a half hours.

The majority of the seats on the two legs of this flight were sold on eBay, the global online marketplace, with all proceeds donated to charities.

On board today’s flight are many of the successful bidders.

• The youngest customer is a 10 month-old boy from Singapore.
• The oldest is a 91 year-old man, also from Singapore, travelling with his family. His son bought the Singapore Airlines Suites ticket for him in the charity auction.
• Mr Julian Hayward bought the first Suite on the flight, paying US$100,380 for himself and a friend to travel from Singapore to Sydney.
• Among passengers is Mr Thomas Lee, from California, who was a passenger on the world’s first Boeing 747 commercial flight between New York and London in 1970.
• Also travelling is Ms Isabelle Chu, a travel agent from Perth, who is flying in both directions on the A380. Ms Chu flew in both directions on the first Singapore Airlines A340-500 flights between Singapore and Los Angeles, and Singapore and New York, non-stop in 2004, with just time for shower between flights. This time, she will enjoy an overnight stopover in Sydney.

• The passengers represent 35 different nationalities, with the largest group being Australians (28%), then Singaporeans (14%), then Britons (11%) and Americans (8%). Those who have come furthest for the first flight are 4 Norwegians.
• The most common first name of passengers on board is David, with 11 people.
• The ratio of male to female passengers on board is 7:3.

Customers across all classes will enjoy a specially-created Champagne Brunch on today’s flight, featuring culinary creations from two of Singapore Airlines’ International Culinary Panel of Chefs – Sam Leong, from Singapore’s Tung Lok Group, and Matthew Moran, from Sydney’s Aria Restaurant. The two chefs will fly on board the aircraft and supervise the preparation and service of meals in all cabins.

Singapore Airlines Suites customers will enjoy some of the world’s finest wines, starting with Dom Pérignon Rosé 1996 , then some of the finest red wines of the last century: Château Cos D’Estournel 1982, Château Pichon-Longueville Comtesse De Lalande 1982, and Australia’s Penfolds Grange Hermitage Shiraz 1990.

See the attachment for choice of Singapore Airlines Suites Champagne Brunch courses.

Tomorrow, SQ380 will fly the return leg of this trip, from Sydney back to Singapore, departing at 1600hrs and arriving at 2215hrs.

The auction raised around S$1.9 million (NZD $1.72million), all of which will be split three ways, between Singapore and Sydney charities, and a global humanitarian organisation:

• One third to Singapore’s Community Chest
• One third between the Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick, and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, both in Sydney
• One third to Médecins Sans Frontières, also known as Doctors Without Borders.

Cheques will be presented to the beneficiary organisations during events in Singapore and Sydney.

Singapore Airlines took delivery of the world’s first A380 on 15 October 2007, at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse.

The airline’s three-class A380 features a brand new cabin class - the Singapore Airlines Suites, a class beyond first. Together with Business and Economy Class seats, the Singapore Airlines A380 has a seating capacity of 471.

The A380 will commence scheduled service between Singapore and Sydney on one of the three daily flights in each direction on Sunday, 28 October 2007.

The delivery of subsequent aircraft will allow for the introduction of the A380, on one of the three daily flights between Singapore and London’s Heathrow Airport from the first quarter of 2008.

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CHOICE OF MEALS
FOR SINGAPORE AIRLINES SUITES CUSTOMERS

Dom Pérignon Rosé 1996
Chilled Malossol Caviar, served with buckwheat blinis

Contemporary Australian cuisine
at its best,
by Matthew Moran

Appetiser
Seared yellowfin tuna, served with fingerling potato, haricot vert, quail egg, cherry tomatoes, olive tapenade and pesto sauce

Soup
Chestnut and mushroom soup, with sautéed foie gras

Main
Scampi and prawn ravioli, served with crab meat salad, in a bisque sauce

Pan-roasted Muscovy duck breast, with black cherry-jus and a light celeriac puree

Dessert
Rum baba, Served with Calvados syrup, vanilla ice cream and apple & muscatel chutney

Modern Asian culinary art
by Sam Leong

Appetiser
Chilled lightly marinated lobster tail, served with a spicy peanut Szechuan dressing

Soup
Classic double-broiled spring chicken, with Korean ginseng in a milky broth

Main
Steamed black cod, wrapped in cabbage, served with sautéed hon shimeji in soya bean crumbs

Wok-fried beef in garlic and black java pepper sauce, with fish noodles and bean sprouts

Dessert
Coconut ice cream, served with sweetened pumpkin puree

Selection of gourmet cheeses
Fruits of the Season
Freshly Brewed Tea or Coffee, served with fine pralines

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