Singapore Airlines, unions, discuss effects of planned capacity reduction

The management of Singapore Airlines has been meeting with union leaders to discuss how to mitigate the potential impact of the airline's announced capacity reduction on staff. Singapore Airlines plans to reduce its capacity by 11 per cent between April of this year and March of 2010.

The current capacity reduction plan will entail the decommissioning of 17 aircraft. Earlier, Singapore Airlines had announced plans to remove only four aircraft from their fleet.

According to the airline, talks between management and Singapore Airlines' three staff unions includes discussions of accelerated clearance of leave entitlements, voluntary leave without pay, voluntary early retirement and shorter work months.

Noting that Singapore Airlines "does not have a domestic operation to soften the blow from the slump in international air traffic," CEO Chew Choon Seng said 2009 is going to be a very difficult year for the airline.

"We have already taken action such as expanding and stepping up training and re-training programmes, and we will contemplate retrenchment only as a last resort, but we do not have the luxury of time and we need to agree and act on some measures quickly so that we can push back the point of retrenchment as far as possible and improve our chances of avoiding it altogether," Mr. Chew said.

"The Company will work with the staff and the unions in forging a consensus on the action plans. Together in cooperation, we will rise to the challenges confronting us and ride out the storm," Mr. Chew said, pledging that should cuts in salary become necessary, management would be the first to take them.

Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 completes 1,000th commercial flight

Last October, Singapore Airlines made history by operating the first-ever Airbus A380 commercial flight. Now, just shy of 10 months later, Singapore Airlines has completed its 1,000th flight with the A380, the world's largest passenger aircraft.

Singapore Airlines' 1,000th commercial A380 flight was Flight SQ 322, which departed from Singapore Changi Airport at 23:30 local time on August 4, 2008. The non-stop scheduled flight arrived at London Heathrow Airport at 06:00 local time on August 5, 2008.

According to Singapore Airlines, their five A380 aircraft have accumulated 8,500 flying hours to date, and have carried nearly 400,000 customers. The carrier is expected to take delivery of its sixth A380 next month. That aircraft is one of 14 more A380s that Singapore Airlines has on order from Airbus, with options on another six.

Singapore Airlines says that they have stepped up training for crew, so that more are qualified to operate the A380 in the coming years. To date, 140 pilots and 2,000 cabin crew have been trained to fly and serve onboard the aircraft.

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New designer uniforms for Singapore Airlines male cabin crew

When Singapore Airlines male cabin crew begin wearing their new designer uniforms later this month, it will not be a hat that makes the man -- it will be the tie. Designed by veteran French fashion designer Christophe Galibert, artistic Director of Balmain Uniformes, the new look features a smart new single-breasted navy blue suit, worn with a sky blue shirt and a striped tie. It is the tie that will distinguish one crew position from another.

The new ties are pictured at right. Each color represents a different crew rank. From left to right:

• Purple – Inflight Supervisor
• Red – Chief Steward
• Green – Leading Steward
• Blue – Flight Steward

The designer, Mr. Galibert, said, "The entire Balmain team was thrilled to embark on the mission of designing the Singapore Airlines male cabin crew uniform and bringing to it our own international touch.

"In designing this new look, our main aim was to retain the legendary elegance of the Singapore Airlines male cabin crew but at the same time make it more consistent with the iconic creation of Mr Pierre Balmain’s sarong kebaya. Our challenge was, therefore, to find a matching smartness and unique sophistication for the male crew uniform."

The sarong kebaya uniform worn by female cabin crew at Singapore Airlines also is a Balmain design. The colors of the new male cabin crew uniform, including the ties, were chosen to coordinate with the colors of the women's sarong kebaya.

Mr. Tan Pee Teck, Senior Vice President Cabin Crew at Singapore Airlines added, "The new uniform projects a smart and professional image and will instill a sense of pride in the crew. This is even more so since many of our crew members were themselves actively involved in the selection and fine-tuning of the design concept and colour scheme of the uniform."

The current male cabin crew uniform, consisting of grey pants and jackets in several colors, was designed by Lanvin in 1991. Male cabin crew at Singapore Airlines will begin wearing their new designer uniforms on June 30, 2008.

According to Singapore Airlines, the carrier currently employs 7,375 cabin crew members, of which almost 40% are male.

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Singapore Airlines Boeing 777 loses cabin pressure during cruise

A Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-200 aircraft en route to Beijing from Singapore reportedly lost cabin pressure approximately 90 minutes after departure, and had to return to Singapore's Changi Airport. The aircraft, which had 232 passengers and 13 crew on board, landed safely. There were no reports of injuries.

The incident occurred this past Saturday, February 2, 2008, while Singapore Airlines Flight SQ802 was at an altitude of 36,000 ft., say news reports. According to an article about the incident on Channel NewsAsia, the aircraft first made a rapid descent first to 32,000 ft, and then to 10,000 ft, at which point the situation stabilized. Cabin oxygen masks deployed during the descent.

Passengers were accommodated on other aircraft to continue their journey to Beijing.

Capt. Robert Ting: PIC of Airbus A380 inaugural commercial flight

The pilot in command (PIC) of this week's inaugural commercial flight of the A380 was Singapore Airlines Captain Robert Ting. According to some news reports, Capt. Ting was treated like a rock star -- at least for the day -- as journalists interviewed him, passengers asked for his autograph, and everyone wanted him to pose for pictures.

Singapore Flight SQ 380 from Singapore to Sydney, the first commercial flight of the A380, took place yesterday. There were 455 passengers and 35 crew on board, including four pilots. Capt. Ting was in command of the historic flight.

According to Capt. Ting, the A380 handles a lot like the A340-500. Here are a few operational details about the inaugural flight, from an interview with Capt. Ting published in The Australian:

• Takeoff weight was 468 tons. The passengers and crew accounted for just 8% of that total, with fuel making up another 28%.
• The aircraft rotated at 154 knots. It took 40 to 45 seconds for the aircraft to rotate, using about 76% of maximum engine thrust.
• "At max landing weight of this plane compared to the max landing weight of a Boeing 747-400, we are at a lower landing speed, 138 knots. This is mainly because of the size of the wings," said Capt. Ting.

In addition to being the PIC for the A380's first commercial flight, Captain Ting also commanded the aircraft on its delivery flight from France to Singapore earlier this month.

The 56 year old Singaporean joined Singapore Airlines in 1971, and has logged over 15,000 flying hours. Captain Ting holds eight different type ratings.

Singapore Airlines A380 - What's the cabin like?

The first commercial flight of the world's largest passenger airliner, the double-decker Airbus A380, took place this week . For its inaugural flight, Singapore Airlines Flight SQ 380 traveled from Singapore's Changi Airport to Sydney International Airport with 455 passengers and 35 crew on board.

The new Singapore Airlines A380 has two decks with 12 cabins in first class, 60 extra-wide seats in business class, and 399 seats in economy class. If you've been wondering what the interior of the aircraft looks like, here are some videos that will give you an armchair tour.

The first, a two and a half minute video produced by Airbus, shows the A380 cabin interior, including the premium class center aisle seats that convert to double beds:



Next is a four minute promotional video about the A380 from Singapore Airlines:



Thanks to Airbus and Singapore Airlines for providing these videos. For more information about this new aircraft, visit the Airbus A380 Navigator interactive website.

First commercial Airbus A380 flight completed: Singapore Airlines Flight 380

The first commercial flight by an Airbus A380 was completed yesterday when Singapore Airlines Flight SQ 380 arrived at Sydney from Singapore yesterday. The huge aircraft carried 455 passengers and 35 crew members (including four pilots), commanded by Captain Robert Ting. It took a little over seven hours for the inaugural flight between Singapore's Changi Airport and Sydney International Airport.

If you've been wondering what it was like to fly on the A380's maiden commercial flight, there are many accounts available from the journalists who were on board. Here are a few good articles, with lots of photos:

• What was it like to fly on the A380? - BBC News
• On board the Airbus A380 - CNET News
• A party on board as Singapore Airlines introduces A380 - International Herald Tribune

For more information about the world's largest passenger airliner, visit this interactive website provided by the aircraft's manufacturer: Airbus A380 Navigator.

If you are curious about what the double-decker cabin looks like, click here to view videos of the interior of the A380, from Airbus and Singapore Airlines.

[Photo Source]

First Airbus A380 in Singapore Airlines livery

Aviation news website FlightGlobal.com has published photos of the the first Singapore Airlines Airbus A380, fresh from the paint shop.

It took 21 days to paint the huge aircraft -- number MSN003 -- in the Singapore Airlines livery. One hundred painters worked over four shifts to hand-polish the 3,100 square meters of fuselage surface area.

Singapore Airlines expects to take delivery of this first A380 in October of this year. Three additional A380s for Singapore -- MSN005, MSN006 and MSN008 -- are in production at this time.

Earlier this year FlightGlobal.com published photos of the interior of another A380. That one, A380 MSN007, features a "development and demonstration cabin" that has 12 first class seats and 307 economy seats on the main deck, plus 64 business class and 136 economy seats on the upper deck.

[Photo Source]

Singapore Girl ads on the way out?

We've all seen the ads -- "Singapore Girl — You're a great way to fly" -- but according to a Reuters article published in USA Today and elsewhere, those ads may be discontinued soon. The article says that "Despite her success, critics complain the Singapore Girl concept is sexist, outmoded and largely intended to serve male passengers' fantasies of desirable, subservient Oriental women."

Gee, ya think??

Apparently looking for a change, Singapore Airlines is asking advertising agencies other than Batey Ads, which has handled the account since 1972, to submit bids for a new campaign. The outcome could change things for the Singapore Girl ads.

Here's an excerpt from the Reuters article:

Recent adverts for Singapore Air feature the airline's ultra-modern aircraft, updated seats or inflight food. But the perfectly groomed Singapore Girl still features prominently, gently covering a sleeping passenger or offering meals.

Former flight attendants reject the sexism charge and many take pride in a profession that lost much of its glamour since air travel became an everyday phenomenon.

An ex-Singapore Girl who asked to be identified only as Nancy said the airline should hold on to the campaign and not "put their crew into dull business suits".

"When I put on the uniform, I represented Singapore, not just the airline. It made me so proud and we would get a lot of positive feedback," she said.

Nine out of ten of the female cabin crew are Singaporean or Malaysian, while the remainder are hired from China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea and Taiwan for language skills.

They follow strict rules, down to the way they wear long hair — never loose — and the colour of nail varnish or lipstick.

Ironically, the Southeast Asian airline relied on white European men — advertising mastermind Ian Batey and French designer Pierre Balmain — to come up with the idea of the graceful Asian girl in a batik uniform, known as sarong kebaya.

Hmm, that doesn't strike me as ironic at all!

The Reuters article quoted a spokesman for the airline who denied that the review of its ad agency could necessarily put an end to the Singapore Girl. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Singapore's luxurious new Boeing 777-300ER

This week marked Singapore Airlines' inaugural Boeing 777-300ER service from San Francisco to Seoul, and then on to Singapore. But the aircraft was not just any old Boeing 777-300ER. This one was a new version ordered by Singapore that features a specially designed, ultra-luxurious passenger cabin.

A news article in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer says that the interior features in the snazzy new cabin originally were intended for the Airbus A380 aircraft, but since Singapore won't be able to take delivery of its first A380 until October, the new 'cabin products' are being introduced on the Boeing 777-300ER instead.

Although the Boeing 777- 300ER has been in airline service since 2004, the version ordered by Singapore Airlines has a number of interior "firsts" for Boeing.

It's the first 777 with no overhead luggage storage bins along the center of the cabin in business class, and no overhead bins at all in first class, giving the cabin a roomier feel.

Also a first is a space-saving lift system that allows the crew to store their luggage and other personal things above the cabin. This was one of the new features that [Ken Davis, an interiors engineer with Boeing Commercial Airplanes] worried might be troublesome since the crew was not familiar with its operation.

Mr. Davis went along on the inaugural flight to assist the cabin crew if needed.

Until they showed up at the San Francisco airport, most of the passengers who took the first flight were not aware they would be flying on the new plane. But they realized the flight was special when they arrived at gate 99 in the international terminal and saw the balloons, free food and beverages -- and the media. Three newspaper reporters went on the flight, as well as the travel editor and a cameraman from a San Francisco TV station.

"We thought maybe someone was having a wedding," Jan Bruneau said when she saw the balloons. She and her husband, Dave, from Alberta, were flying to Singapore and then on to Sydney, Australia, to visit their daughter.

They had seats in the economy class. At 19 inches wide, that's about 2 inches more than passengers have in economy class on Singapore Airlines' other 777 models, and its 747-400s.

Each economy seat also has a 10.6-inch monitor for in-flight entertainment, considerably bigger than the monitors in economy class of Singapore's other jets.

Seats in the first class section are 35 inches wide, and there is an air bag incorporated into the seat belts. The air bag would automatically inflate "to help protect the passenger in a crash or violent event." First class also features bedding by Givenchy.

Business class passengers sit in 30-inch seats that turn into beds.

Singapore Airlines already operates 60 'Triple-7' aircraft. It has ordered 19 of the new 777- 300ERs.

Singapore Airlines is likely to have the same seats in economy and business on the A380 that are on its 777-300ERs. And the Airbus plane will have the same in-flight entertainment system. But the airline is keeping mum about first class on the A380 -- for those who can afford a flying hotel.

Sounds like a game of 'can you top this?' Someone please tel Singapore Airlines I'd be happy to try out the new service and write an official review!