Singapore Airlines Fleet & Storage Report: December 2020

Singapore Airlines is rounding off a torrid year operating its busiest schedule and highest number of passenger aircraft since the COVID-19 pandemic brought an almost complete halt to operations in April 2020. This month 70 of the airline’s wide body jets are flying a mixture of passenger and cargo-only flights.

Though we’ve already said goodbye to many older aircraft types, there’s a formal farewell this month for the airline’s longest-serving Airbus A330, and a sign of yet more new aircraft deliveries to come in the New Year.

Looking forward we should also see the introduction of ex-SilkAir Boeing 737-800s to the Singapore Airlines fleet in 2021, plus the return of Boeing 737 MAX 8s into service.

Fleet totals

Here are the Singapore Airlines passenger fleet totals at 24th December 2020.

	CAAS Database:	135
	Recently deregistered: For disposal:	-1 -28
	In Service:	106
	In maintenance / stored:	-36
	Active:	70

The official registered aircraft data in combination with recent retirement announcements and analysis of actual flight movements over the last few weeks allows us to determine the actual ‘in service’ fleet (available to the airline) of 106 planes at 24th December 2020, 70 of which are currently active.

  Click here to see the official CAAS list of registered aircraft in Singapore at 30th November 2020.

SIA Passenger Fleet at 24th December 2020

This table shows the Singapore Airlines fleet including how many of each aircraft type are legally registered (‘Registered’), available to the airline (‘In Service’) and currently operating revenue passenger or cargo flights (‘Active’).

Type	Registered	In Service	Active
A330-300 (full details)	6*	0	0
A350-900 (full details)	26	26	26
A350-900 Regional (full details)	19	19	18
A350-900 ULR (full details)	7	7	3
A380-800 v1 (full details)	6	0	0
A380-800 v2 (full details)	4	3	0
A380-800 v3 (full details)	9	9	0
777-200 (full details)	8	0	0
777-200ER (full details)	3	0	0
777-300 (full details)	4	0	0
777-300ER (full details)	27	27	9
787-10 (full details)	15	15	14
Total	134	106	70

* CAAS database at 30th November 2020 reflects 7 A330s, however 9V-STC was deregistered on 21st December 2020. Data is correct at 24th December 2020.

Following confirmation that all the airline’s remaining Airbus A330s, Boeing 777-200s, Boeing 777-200ERs and Boeing 777-300s will not be returning to the fleet after COVID-19, in addition to seven older Airbus A380s, we have removed these from the ‘In Service’ column.

This reflects a future fleet of 106 aircraft, plus future near-term deliveries of Airbus A350s and Boeing 787-10s.

There will also be a number of Boeing 737-800s and potentially some Boeing 737 MAX 8s joining the fleet in 2021, as the SilkAir merger progresses.

Fleet activity

Only four aircraft types are currently in service with the airline, as shown in the table below outlining the number in use at each of our recent fleet update ‘snapshots’.

An aircraft is considered ‘active’ if it has flown at least one passenger or cargo-only flight in the last 14 days.

SIA fleet activity timeline (2020)
	A350			B773	B77W	B787	Total
	LH	R	ULR
Apr	16	10	—	4	18	15	63
May	14	9	—	3	18	15	59
Jun	21	12	—	2	11	15	61
Aug	23	14	—	1	4	14	56
Sep	24	13	—	1	7	12	57
Oct	24	13	—	1	4	12	54
Nov	25	17	—	—	10	14	66
Dec	26	18	3	—	9	14	70

Almost all Airbus A350s and Boeing 787-10s are now in consistent use, while the deployment of Boeing 777-300ERs remains at around a third of that fleet, with the airline actively using a total of 70 aircraft in December 2020, it’s highest total in eight months.

Here’s a graphical look at the active vs. stored fleet, including the average daily utilisation per active aircraft based on the 7-day period between 14th December and 20th December 2020.

Boeing 777-300ER activity remains low, dropping from 6 hours on average per aircraft in November to around 4 hours in December. These aircraft continue to mostly be deployed on cargo-only services, with some passenger flights in the mix including to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh, where the First Class cabin is not sold.

Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s on the other hand are far busier, with the active aircraft in those fleets clocking up nine to ten hours per day on average.

The Airbus A350 long-haul fleet continues to be very stretched, due to the significant downtime the aircraft are spending in Europe and the USA (over two days each time they visit in some cases), to accommodate the restricted schedule and minimise crew layover durations in high-risk countries.

This partly explains the return to service of the Airbus A350 ULRs, with those three active aircraft gently re-entering service this month flying an average of 4 hours per day.

This will ramp up as all seven aircraft are brought back into operation with daily New York and San Francisco flights from mid-January 2021.

Four aircraft types in the Singapore Airlines fleet remain in storage this month and are not currently being flown at all, which has mostly been the case since early April 2020:

• Airbus A330
• Airbus A380
• Boeing 777-200
• Boeing 777-200ER
• Boeing 777-300

Fleet retirements

In case you missed the news, many of these stored aircraft will not be returning to the Singapore Airlines fleet even after COVID-19, following a fleet and network review undertaken announced in early November alongside the carrier’s first half financial results.

This will include all Airbus A330s, which are being returned to their lessors as planned by September next year, all Boeing 777-200, -200ERs, and -300s, and seven older Airbus A380s.

9V-STC has been deregistered

Earlier this week Singapore Airlines finally said goodbye to Airbus A330-300 9V-STC.

Why was 9V-STC so interesting? It was the longest-serving Airbus A330 in the fleet by far. First delivered on 25th February 2009 as the airline’s third model on an initial five-year lease, it ended up registered to the airline for nearly 12 years!

We can only assume Singapore Airlines got a very good lease renewal deal or two from the aircraft’s owner, DAE Capital, since it remained in the fleet while other much newer A330s were returned after lease expiry.

Fun fact: In 2014, as 9V-STC’s initial lease period was coming to an end, global average monthly lease rates for a brand new Airbus A330-300 were around US$850,000. However, a 10-year old aircraft (like -STC today) would set an airline back less than US$400,000 per month in 2019.

9V-STC operated its final passenger service from Yangon to Singapore on 2nd April 2020, making it the last A330 in the fleet to carry passengers, just as the airline wound its operations up to a skeleton schedule 96% smaller than usual for the month due to COVID-19.

The aircraft was formally deregistered on 21st December 2020 and has been transferred to Air Canada as C-GHKC, but has yet to leave Changi.

The work of the A330 fleet has now been taken up by Airbus A350 Regional and Boeing 787-10 aircraft in the SIA fleet, though there are still six registered A330s in storage at Changi.

These are due for return to lessors between now and September 2021.

Another A350 Regional is coming

Speaking of A330 replacements, on the same day 9V-STC was formally deregistered from Singapore the next brand new Airbus A350 took its first flight in Toulouse.

The aircraft, which will be 9V-SHT on delivery, is part of the next batch of four A350s due for delivery in relatively close succession.

Registrations (and therefore variants) have not been assigned for the next three aircraft, so we’re not sure at this stage whether these will also be Regional or perhaps Long Haul models.

Last time SIA took a batch of new A350 Regionals it waited for four to accumulate in Toulouse then had them delivered in close succession, so it could still be a few more months before we see these next four join the fleet.

The A350 ULR is back in service

As we announced last month, Singapore Airlines’ Airbus A350 ULRs have returned to service on the recently reinstated San Francisco route, operating three times per week.

At this stage three of the seven aircraft in this sub-fleet have been operating, however we expect all seven will return to active service by mid-January 2021, when the New York JFK route switches to daily A350 ULR service and San Francisco also becomes daily on the ULR.

The storage report: December 2020

Here’s how SIA’s passenger fleet activity looked on 24th December 2020, which gives us an indication of which aircraft are stored (last flew 14+ days ago), compared to those either active or in ‘active storage’ (last flew more recently).

Last flew > 60 days ago
Last flew 14-59 days ago
Last flew < 14 days ago

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue passenger or cargo-only flight.

Airbus A330-300

All the airline’s Airbus A330 aircraft remain stored in Singapore. None have flown passenger flights for the last nine months.

These aircraft are being progressively returned to their leasing companies, a process expected to be completed in Q3 2021.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-STC	SIN	2 Apr 20	266
9V-SSD	SIN	31 Mar 20	268
9V-SSE	SIN	27 Mar 20	272
9V-SSF	SIN	13 Mar 20	286
9V-SSG	SIN	23 Mar 20	276
9V-SSH	SIN	28 Mar 20	271
9V-SSI	SIN	25 Nov 19	395

9V-STC completed a test flight on 9th November 2020. It was formally deregistered on 21st December 2020 and transferred to Air Canada as C-GHKC, but has yet to leave Changi.

9V-SSI has yet to make a test flight appearance after sustaining tail damage during a landing incident at Yangon in November 2019. The aircraft was ferried empty to Singapore over a year ago on 14th December 2019, but has not flown since.

Airbus A350-900

The Airbus A350-900 long-haul fleet rose to full strength for the first time since the pandemic, with 9V-SME breaking its eight-month absence with a flight to Amsterdam on 28th November 2020, following a test flight earlier in the day.

The aircraft is now back in regular service, bringing the operating fleet to 26 with none in storage.

On average, each aircraft in this fleet is currently flying six to seven flights per week.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SMA	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMB	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMC	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMD	SIN	15 Dec 20	9
9V-SME	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMF	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMG	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMH	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMI	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMJ	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMK	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SML	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMM	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMN	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMO	SIN	21 Dec 20	3
9V-SMP	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMQ	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMR	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMS	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMT	SIN	20 Dec 20	4
9V-SMU	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMV	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SMW	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SMY	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SMZ	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SJA	SIN	23 Dec 20	1

Airbus A350-900 Regional

There is now only one Airbus A350-900 Regional aircraft in storage or maintenance (9V-SHF), down from two last month.

Overall 18 of this variant were flying over the last two weeks, each operating an average of 11 flights per week.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SHA	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHB	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHC	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHD	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHE	SIN	21 Dec 20	3
9V-SHF	SIN	24 Jul 20	153
9V-SHG	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SHH	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SHI	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHJ	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHK	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHL	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SHM	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHN	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SHO	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SHP	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SHQ	SIN	20 Dec 20	4
9V-SHR	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SHS	SIN	24 Dec 20	0

Airbus A350-900 ULR

As mentioned earlier, an initial batch of three Airbus A350-900 ULR aircraft has re-entered regular passenger service on the Singapore – San Francisco route.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SGA	SIN	25 Mar 20	274
9V-SGB	SIN	22 Mar 20	277
9V-SGC	SIN	30 Mar 20	269
9V-SGD	SIN	25 Mar 20	274
9V-SGE	SIN	19 Dec 20	5
9V-SGF	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SGG	SIN	21 Dec 20	3

This should rise to cover all aircraft by mid-January 2021 once New York operations shift to the ULR and US routes increase to daily service.

Airbus A380-800

Seven of the airline’s flagship Airbus A380 aircraft are now in long-term storage at Alice Springs, with the other 12 aircraft stored at Changi.

No revenue flights with the A380s have been flown since March 2020, and they are not being used in the current schedule through 31st March 2021.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SKF	SIN	24 Mar 20	275
9V-SKG	SIN	25 Mar 20	274
9V-SKH	SIN	22 Mar 20	277
9V-SKI	SIN	20 Mar 20	279
9V-SKJ	SIN	20 Mar 20	279
9V-SKK	ASP	21 Mar 20	272
9V-SKL	SIN	27 Mar 20	278
9V-SKM	SIN	21 Mar 20	278
9V-SKN	SIN	15 Oct 19	436
9V-SKP	ASP	24 Mar 20	275
9V-SKQ	ASP	26 Mar 20	273
9V-SKR	SIN	19 Mar 20	280
9V-SKS	SIN	12 Mar 20	287
9V-SKT	ASP	18 Mar 20	281
9V-SKU	SIN	25 Mar 20	274
9V-SKV	SIN	28 Mar 20	271
9V-SKW	ASP	26 Mar 20	273
9V-SKY	ASP	27 Mar 20	272
9V-SKZ	ASP	30 Mar 20	269

With First Class and Suites not being sold on any Singapore Airlines flight between now and 31st October 2021, there looks to be no imminent return for the superjumbo fleet, though SIA has now confirmed 12 of the aircraft will be remaining under current plans for the post-COVID recovery, all to be fitted with new cabin products.

Boeing 777-200

Earlier this year SIA inherited back a set of seven Boeing 777-200s it was leasing to NokScoot. These aircraft are now stored in Alice Springs, with one additional aircraft hibernating at Changi for a couple of years now.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SQJ	SIN	10 Aug 18	867
9V-SRF	ASP	30 Nov 19	390
9V-SRG	ASP	1 Feb 20	327
9V-SRH	ASP	23 Mar 20	276
9V-SRJ	ASP	7 Jun 20	200
9V-SRL	ASP	24 Mar 20	275
9V-SRP	ASP	24 Mar 20	275
9V-SRQ	ASP	15 Jun 20	192

Last flight and number of days shown reflects most recent passenger service with NokScoot in the case of SRF to SRQ. All these aircraft are for disposal.

Boeing 777-200ER

All 3 of the airline’s Boeing 777-200ERs are stored in Alice Springs, and are now confirmed as for disposal.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SVB	ASP	17 Mar 20	282
9V-SVC	ASP	19 Mar 20	280
9V-SVE	ASP	21 Mar 20	278

Boeing 777-300

As mentioned last month, Singapore Airlines has ceased operating its last Boeing 777-300 (9V-SYJ), with all four remaining aircraft in the fleet for disposal.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SYF	SIN	10 Apr 20	258
9V-SYH	SIN	5 May 20	233
9V-SYJ	SIN	29 Oct 20	56
9V-SYL	SIN	17 Jun 20	190

Boeing 777-300ER

Nine of SIA’s 27 Boeing 777-300ERs were active over the last two weeks, with the other 18 stored at Changi.

These aircraft are now mostly dedicated to cargo-only operation in the current schedule through 31st March 2021, having ceased almost all passenger services in June 2020, though Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh routes both see the aircraft operating with the First Class cabin remaining vacant.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SWA	SIN	29 Mar 20	270
9V-SWB	SIN	24 Mar 20	275
9V-SWD	SIN	19 Mar 20	280
9V-SWE	SIN	18 Dec 20	6
9V-SWF	SIN	28 Sep 20	87
9V-SWG	SIN	30 May 20	208
9V-SWH	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SWI	SIN	6 May 20	232
9V-SWJ	SIN	4 May 20	234
9V-SWK	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SWL	SIN	13 Dec 20	11
9V-SWM	SIN	7 Dec 20	17
9V-SWN	SIN	4 Dec 20	20
9V-SWO	SIN	19 Dec 20	5
9V-SWP	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SWQ	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SWR	SIN	22 Dec 20	2
9V-SWS	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SWT	SIN	23 Mar 20	276
9V-SWU	SIN	30 Apr 20	238
9V-SWV	SIN	13 Jun 20	194
9V-SWW	SIN	13 Jun 20	194
9V-SWY	SIN	5 Dec 20	19
9V-SWZ	SIN	27 Jun 20	180
9V-SNA	SIN	23 Jun 20	184
9V-SNB	SIN	16 Mar 20	283
9V-SNC	SIN	14 Jun 20	193

On average the nine active Boeing 777-300ERs in the fleet are flying only five flights per week, including cargo-only flights to Beijing, Tokyo and Istanbul.

Boeing 787-10

Only one of SIA’s 15 Boeing 787-10s is currently inactive, with the remainder flying a mixture of passenger and cargo-only flights.

On average, each active Boeing 787-10 aircraft is currently flying 14 flights per week, the busiest in the fleet by flight volumes.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SCA	SIN	15 Dec 20	9
9V-SCB	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCC	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCD	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCE	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SCF	SIN	21 Dec 20	3
9V-SCG	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCH	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCI	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SCJ	SIN	23 Dec 20	1
9V-SCK	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SCL	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SCM	SIN	16 Sep 20	99
9V-SCN	SIN	24 Dec 20	0
9V-SCO	SIN	23 Dec 20	1

Alice Springs storage

29 Singapore Airlines Group aircraft remain in long-term storage at Alice Springs airport in Australia at the end of 2020, where the hot, dry climate is far more conducive to preservation.

These include SilkAir’s Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets, which have been grounded since mid-2019, and some Scoot aircraft.

SIA Group aircraft stored in Alice Springs
Airline	Aircraft	Total
	Airbus A380	7
	Boeing 777-200	7
	Boeing 777-200ER	3
	Boeing 737 MAX 8	6
	Airbus A320	3
	Boeing 787-8	3

Future aircraft deliveries

The SIA Group still has large order books with Airbus and Boeing for its fleet modernisation and replacement strategy over the next few years. These comprise:

Additionally, Scoot is taking 10 Airbus A321neo aircraft through leasing companies over the coming years.

Singapore Airlines has now concluded its negotiations with Airbus regarding future aircraft deliveries for the group, however discussions with Boeing remain ongoing.

The airline would not be pressed on whether any cancellations may result from the proposed changes at a recent analyst briefing, when asked whether the discussions were purely for deferral.

“We are not ready to disclose at this point, because negotiation is at an advanced stage”

Tan Kai Ping, EVP Finance and Strategy, Singapore Airlines

Essentially of course, negotiations with Airbus and Boeing will seek to reduce SIA’s new aircraft intake, potentially spreading out this large commitment for 136 additional new aircraft across a longer time period.

Cathay Pacific recently announced it had deferred its Boeing 777-9 order to “beyond 2025”, so we expect to hear similar news from SIA once negotiations are concluded.

What 2021 will bring for the fleet

While we still don’t know exactly how the new aircraft delivery schedule will look for SIA in the coming year, there are some things we can expect.

• Former SilkAir Boeing 737-800s will enter service with Singapore Airlines by March 2021. The aircraft will retain their former cabin products, but several have already been painted in Singapore Airlines livery.
• The SilkAir Boeing 737 MAX 8s are set to be re-certified following modifications. Sources say the six aircraft should start to be returned to Changi from Alice Springs soon. It’s not clear if they will re-enter service with SilkAir or move across to SIA.
• The final Airbus A330s will be returned to their lessors by September 2021, though the type is not due to re-enter passenger service beforehand.

Full details

As always you can see full details of each aircraft type in the Singapore Airlines fleet at the following links, including aircraft registrations specific to each configuration.

• Airbus A330
• Airbus A350 (3 versions)
• Airbus A380 (3 versions)
• Boeing 777-200
• Boeing 777-200ER
• Boeing 777-300
• Boeing 777-300ER
• Boeing 787-10

If the seat types and routes interest you more – see our Seats Guide.

Stay tuned for the next fleet (and aircraft storage) update in January 2021.

(Cover Photo: Aero Icarus)