SIA's A350 long-haul fleet to get $1.1b upgrade
Passengers flying long haul on Singapore Airlines (SIA) can expect to enjoy greater comfort come 2026, after the national carrier announced a $1.1 billion plan to retrofit 41 Airbus A350 aircraft with newly designed cabins.
The upgrades, which will cover all cabin classes, will be done in Singapore by SIA Engineering Company, the airline said in a statement on Nov 4. The work is expected to take six years and be completed by the end of 2030.
The new cabin designs, which have been in development since 2018, were originally meant to be launched on the next-generation Boeing 777-9 jets as early as 2021.
But production of the new wide-body aircraft has been hit by delays. The latest setback came in October, when the American jet maker said the first 777-9 planes would be delivered only in 2026 at the earliest.
SIA may have to wait even longer to receive its first planes, with other airlines like Emirates and Lufthansa at the front of the queue.
While SIA said its A350 upgrades are independent of the delivery schedule of its new Boeing planes, the delays have prompted rival airlines to change their plans and launch new cabin products on other aircraft first.
In October, Cathay Pacific launched its new Aria Suites business class seats on a retrofitted Boeing 777-300ER, instead of waiting for its 777-9s to be delivered. Similarly, Lufthansa chose to install its new Allegris cabin products on its A350 and Boeing 787 aircraft first.
When asked, SIA said it remains in discussion with Boeing on the delivery schedule of the 31 777-9s that the airline has on order.
It added that its plans for the A350 retrofitting programme began “several years ago”.
SIA said on Nov 4 that all of its A350-900 long-haul aircraft will be upgraded, with the first retrofitted plane to enter service in the second quarter of 2026.
The planes will be fitted with new business class seats, and new economy and premium economy cabin interiors.
SIA’s seven A350-900 ultra-long-range (ULR) jets will also be retrofitted, with the first of these upgraded planes expected to take to the skies in the first quarter of 2027.
In addition to new premium economy and business cabins, the retrofitted ULR variants will also get first class seats, which they currently do not have.
Post-retrofit, SIA said, its 34 A350-900 long-haul aircraft will be configured with 42 business class seats, 24 premium economy class seats and 192 economy class seats – five more economy seats than in the current configuration.
The seven A350-900ULR variants will feature four first class seats, 70 business class seats, and 58 premium economy class seats after the upgrading work is done.
This means three more business class seats and 36 fewer premium economy seats compared with the current arrangement.
SIA said its new long-haul first class and business class seats will have “a spacious layout and ergonomic elements”.
The airline revealed little else, promising to share fuller details closer to 2026. But a teaser image of its new business class product shows that the new seats will feature privacy doors, similar to Qatar Airways’ Qsuite.
SIA has also previously said companion travel in its new first class cabin will go beyond just couple seating and double beds.
As part of the billion-dollar refresh, the airline will roll out a new version of its KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system on the retrofitted planes. Details on the system were also scant, with SIA saying only that it will offer greater personalisation and an extensive range of lifestyle options.
While it can take up to two months to refurbish each aircraft, SIA said the retrofit will be conducted progressively, one plane at a time, minimising the impact on operations.
“The Airbus A350-900 long-haul and ULR aircraft remain integral to our long-term strategy,” said an SIA spokesperson.
“Upgrading their cabins with our all-new next-generation seats will further elevate the premium travel experience for our customers on long-haul and ULR routes.”
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