The SIA Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City schedules have been updated to reflect Boeing 787-10 operation on the evening flight between these cities on a daily basis from 28th July 2018, marking this as the eighth permanent route for the airline with the latest ‘2018 RJ’ regional business class seats.
The schedule
The 787-10 will replace one of the daily A330-300 flights between Singapore and Ho Chi Minh from 28th July 2018 with the following timings.
From 28th July 2018
| Flight | From / To | Aircraft | Days |
| SQ178 | SIN0945 – SGN1055 | 333 | Daily |
| SQ184 | SIN1330 – SGN1440 | 333 | 1·3·567 |
| SQ186 | SIN1725 – SGN1835 | 787 | Daily |
| SQ177 | SGN1230 – SIN1530 | 333 | Daily |
| SQ183 | SGN1630 – SIN1930 | 333 | 1·3·567 |
| SQ185 | SGN1940 – SIN2240 | 787 | Daily |
With 36 seats in the new regional Business Class and 301 in Economy Class the switch to this larger aircraft on the SQ186/185 pairing also increases Singapore Airlines’ capacity on the Ho Chi Minh route by 728 seats per week (just over 6%).
Review of the new regional Business Class
You can read our comprehensive review of the Singapore Airlines Boeing 787-10 regional business class, the new ‘2018 RJ’ seat. There’s also our special focus mini-review on the couple middle seats and extra legroom bulkhead seats.
We concluded that while narrower than the older regional business class seat the direct aisle access for all passengers and fully flat-bed make this seat a big improvement and something we think you should aim to book where possible on regional routes.
You can also check out our 787-10 fleet page to help you decide which seat to select whichever class you’re travelling in on this new aircraft.
KrisFlyer redemptions
Here are the KrisFlyer redemption rates you’ll pay by cabin on this route:
| KrisFlyer Redemption Singapore – Ho Chi Minh | ||
| Saver | Advantage | |
| Economy | 12,500 | 25,000 |
| Business | 20,000 | 40,000 |
You can also use any miles you have in other Star Alliance programs to book these flights, including in the business class cabin. Example rates are 17,500 miles in Economy and 30,000 miles in Business using Lifemiles or 8,000 miles in Economy and 25,000 miles in Business with United MileagePlus.
Where the 787-10 is flying
Singapore Airlines remains the sole operator of the 787-10 with their sixth aircraft due for delivery in the last week of June. From 28th July there will be eight routes served by the aircraft on a daily basis.
We have a new regional business class routes tracker page listing the routes and flight schedules currently served or planned for this aircraft, be sure to check it out and bookmark it for your reference.
Summary
With a gap in deliveries prior to the last two 787-10 aircraft scheduled for delivery this year (in August and October) this may be the last new regional Business Class route announcement for a couple of months.
Singapore Airlines are working these new planes quite hard, with a daily utilisation of around 14.5 hours per aircraft per day. So far there seem to be very few technical issues arising, which is promising.
Stay tuned for the latest Singapore Airlines route news as we hear about it.
(Cover Photo: Quang Nguyen Vinh)