Singapore Airlines Fleet: December 2022

It’s been a year since our last Singapore Airlines fleet update, and the carrier has brought more of its passenger aircraft back into service over the last 12 months as travel rebounded following Singapore’s lifting of most border restrictions in April 2022.

Additionally, 11 brand new aircraft were delivered to SIA, 10 of which have been brought into service at the time of writing.

The carrier’s active passenger fleet now stands at over 120 aircraft, practically the same as pre-COVID, though that’s still around 30 aircraft short when you consider that SilkAir has now been fully merged into the mainline carrier.

Fleet totals

Here are the Singapore Airlines passenger fleet totals at 31st December 2022.

	CAAS Database:	148
	Recently delivered: For disposal:	+1 -15
	In Service:	134
	In maintenance / stored:	-11
	Active:	123

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 134 planes at 31st December 2022, 123 of which were recently active.

That’s 12% more than this time last year, when 110 passenger aircraft were active in the fleet.

  Click here to see the official CAAS list of registered aircraft in Singapore at 1st November 2022.

SIA Passenger Fleet at 31st December 2022

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
A350-900 LH	30	30	29
A350-900 MH	24	24	23
A350-900 ULR	7	7	7
A380-800	17	12	10
737-800	9	7	7
737-8 MAX	16	16	15
777-200	5	0	0
777-300ER	26	23	17
787-10	15	15	15
Total	149	134	123

All the airline’s remaining registered Boeing 777-200s will not be returning to the fleet, in addition to five older Airbus A380s, three Boeing 777-300ERs and two Boeing 737-800s.

These are therefore excluded from the ‘In Service’ column.

This reflects a future fleet of 134 aircraft, plus future deliveries of Airbus A350s, Boeing 737-8 MAXs and Boeing 787-10s still on order.

More Boeing 737-8 MAXs join the fleet

During 2022, Singapore Airlines took delivery of six new Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft, as shown below.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 737 MAX
2022 Deliveries

Reg.	Delivered	Entered Service
9V-MBK	15 Feb 2022	2 Jun 2022
9V-MBL	26 Feb 2022	Yet to enter service
9V-MBM	5 Jun 2022	20 Nov 2022
9V-MBN	3 Apr 2022	7 Jul 2022
9V-MBO	18 Jul 2022	15 Sep 2022
9V-MBP	22 Nov 2022	22 Dec 2022

Additionally, four MAX aircraft that had been delivered in late 2021 but were undergoing cabin refits and had not entered service with the airline have all now joined the operating fleet, as shown below.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 737 MAX
2021 Deliveries
2022 Service Entry

Reg.	Delivered	Entered Service
9V-MBG	25 Nov 2021	1 Feb 2022
9V-MBH	4 Dec 2021	22 Mar 2022
9V-MBI	14 Dec 2021	10 Apr 2022
9V-MBJ	25 Dec 2021	30 Apr 2022

9V-MBL is now the only MAX in the fleet not in service, stored at Changi since delivery in February 2022. The aircraft was repainted from SilkAir colours into the Star Alliance colour scheme (photo here) in April 2022, but for some reason has been ‘skipped’ in the service activation order.

This is the first SIA narrow-body aircraft to receive the Star Alliance colours.

All Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft entering service with SIA are fitted with the latest cabin products for the narrow-body fleet. Here are our dedicated articles covering the new cabins, to help you know what to expect on board.

Five more Airbus A350s arrived

In 2022, Singapore Airlines took delivery of five brand new Airbus A350 aircraft.

Singapore Airlines Airbus A350
2022 Deliveries

Reg.	Variant	Delivered	Entered Service
9V-SJE	Long Haul	30 Dec 2021	8 Jan 2022
9V-SHW	Medium Haul	7 Jan 2022	15 Jan 2022
9V-SHY	Medium Haul	8 Apr 2022	18 Apr 2022
9V-SJC	Long Haul	28 Jun 2022	5 Jul 2022
9V-SJD	Long Haul	20 Aug 2022	26 Aug 2022

Four more passenger A350s will be delivered to the airline, all of which will be the Long Haul variant.

Farewell Boeing 777-200ER and 777-300s

At the start of 2022 Singapore Airlines still had one Boeing 777-200ER (9V-SVE) and two Boeing 777-300s (9V-SYF and -SYH) legally registered to the airline, despite both types having been withdrawn from service.

These have now been sold and de-registered, with the following fate:

• 9V-SVE was sold to Eastern Airlines as N830KW, and ferried from Alice Springs to Kansas City via Brisbane and Honolulu on 5th – 7th January 2022. It has yet to be converted into a freighter aircraft and enter service with the carrier. Here’s a photo of it in storage in July 2022.
• 9V-SYH was sold to Eastern Airlines as N834KW, and ferried from Singapore to Kansas City via Seoul on 24th – 26th February 2022. It is also awaiting freighter conversion and entry into service with the carrier.
• 9V-SYF was sold to Eastern Airlines as N833KW, and ferried from Singapore to Kansas City via Seoul on 27th – 28th April 2022. It is also awaiting freighter conversion and entry into service with the carrier.

These aircraft will join the now-defunct NokScoot (but SIA-owned) Boeing 777-200 9V-SRF, which was sold to Eastern Airlines as a freighter in late 2021.

Two more A380s scrapped at Changi

Last year we reported how two of SIA’s older retired older A380s, 9V-SKG and 9V-SKH, were scrapped at Changi for spare parts.

Two more aircraft have since met a similar fate, with 9V-SKJ and 9V-SKI scrapped at Changi in October and November 2022 respectively.

The end result is not a pretty sight for any A380 enthusiast.

Only 9V-SKF remains at Changi among the three A380s not returning to service. It is presently parked near T1.

The fate of the two A380s stored in Alice Springs, 9V-SKK and 9V-SKL, which also won’t rejoin the fleet, is unknown.

The final Airbus A380 is in refit

In brighter news for the airline’s remaining 12 Airbus A380s, October 2022 brought the news that 9V-SKQ’s cabin refit has now been completed, with the aircraft re-entering service on the 16th of that month, over 2.5 years since it last had paying passengers on board.

That means that 9V-SKP is the last of the carrier’s superjumbos now in the hangar for refit, hopefully set to be rolled out next year.

The A380 is now being used extensively on the network, including to Hong Kong, London, Sydney and Shanghai.

Further expansion for the A380s in 2022 includes Melbourne, Delhi and a second daily Sydney service, though the Singapore – Frankfurt – New York route sadly downgrades to a Boeing 777-300ER next summer.

Fleet activity by registration

Here’s a breakdown of the SIA fleet of passenger aircraft based on recent revenue passenger or cargo-only flight activity, based on an analysis conducted on 31st December 2022.

Airbus A350s

All but one of the 30-strong Airbus A350-900 Long Haul fleet was active in December 2022, with 29 aircraft flying revenue services over the last two weeks (9V-SMI is in maintenance).

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SMA	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMC	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMD	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SME	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMF	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMG	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMH	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMI	SIN	19 Nov 22	42
9V-SMJ	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-SMK	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SML	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMM	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMN	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMO	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMP	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMQ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMR	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMS	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMT	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMU	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SMV	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMW	SIN	21 Dec 22	10
9V-SMY	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SMZ	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SJA	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SJB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SJC	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SJD	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SJE	SIN	30 Dec 22	1

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

23 out of 24 Airbus A350-900 Medium Haul aircraft were flying recently, with 9V-SHM in maintenance.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SHA	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHC	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHD	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHE	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHF	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHG	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHH	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHI	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHJ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHK	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHL	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHM	SIN	23 Nov 22	38
9V-SHN	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHO	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHP	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHQ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHR	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHS	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHT	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SHU	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHV	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHW	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SHY	SIN	31 Dec 22	0

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

All of the airline’s Airbus A350-900 ULR aircraft are in service, covering regular San Francisco, New York JFK and Newark services.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SGA	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SGB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SGC	SIN	28 Dec 22	3
9V-SGD	SIN	28 Dec 22	3
9V-SGE	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-SGF	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-SGG	SIN	30 Dec 22	1

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

Airbus A380s

A total of 10 Airbus A380s are currently in regular service, with 9V-SKP under refit as mentioned above.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SKF	SIN	24 Mar 20	1012
9V-SKI	SIN	20 Mar 20	1016
		Scrapped
9V-SKJ	SIN	20 Mar 20	1016
		Scrapped
9V-SKK	ASP	21 Mar 20	1015
9V-SKL	ASP	27 Mar 20	1009
9V-SKM	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKN	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKP	SIN	24 Mar 20	1012
9V-SKQ	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKR	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKS	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKT	SIN	17 Nov 22	44
9V-SKU	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SKV	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-SKW	SIN	28 Dec 22	3
9V-SKY	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SKZ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

9V-SKT appears to be in routine maintenance, having not flown since mid-November.

Boeing 737-800s

7 out of the 9 Boeing 737-800s that moved across from SilkAir to Singapore Airlines remain in regular service with the mainline carrier, with 9V-MGA and -MGB now deemed surplus to requirements and set for disposal, as revealed in May 2022.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-MGA	SIN	5 May 22	240
9V-MGB	SIN	21 May 22	224
9V-MGC	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGD	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGE	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGK	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGL	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGM	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MGN	SIN	30 Dec 22	1

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

SilkAir’s last passenger flight was on 6th May 2021, from Kathmandu to Singapore. Don’t miss our tribute to the regional subsidiary’s rich 29-year history.

Boeing 737-8 MAX

As mentioned earlier, 15 out of 16 SIA Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft are now in regular service, with only 9V-MBL to join the fold in its Star Alliance livery.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-MBA	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBB	SIN	23 Dec 22	8
9V-MBC	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBD	SIN	26 Dec 22	5
9V-MBE	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBF	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-MBG	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBH	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBI	SIN	29 Dec 22	2
9V-MBJ	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBK	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBL	SIN	To enter service
9V-MBM	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBN	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBO	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-MBP	SIN	30 Dec 22	1

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

Boeing 777-200

Boeing 777-200s will not return to the SIA fleet, with the five aircraft still owned by the airline in storage at Alice Springs or Changi.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SRG	ASP	1 Feb 20	1064
9V-SRH	ASP	23 Mar 20	1013
9V-SRJ	ASP	7 Jun 20	937
9V-SRL	ASP	24 Mar 20	1012
9V-SRP	SIN	24 Mar 20	1012

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

Boeing 777-300ERs

17 of SIA’s 26 registered Boeing 777-300ERs were active over the last two weeks.

The other 9 aircraft are stored at Changi (7) or Alice Springs (2), though as we know 9V-SWD, -SWE and -SWF will not rejoin the fleet, leaving only 6 to be activated again.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SWB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWD	SIN	19 Mar 20	1017
9V-SWE	SIN	1 Feb 21	698
9V-SWF	SIN	28 Sep 20	824
9V-SWG	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWH	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWI	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SWJ	ASP	4 May 20	971
9V-SWK	ASP	1 Aug 21	517
9V-SWL	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SWM	SIN	24 Dec 21	372
9V-SWN	SIN	24 Dec 21	372
9V-SWO	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWP	SIN	21 Nov 22	40
9V-SWQ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWR	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWS	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWT	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWU	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SWV	SIN	26 Dec 22	5
9V-SWW	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SWY	SIN	5 Dec 20	756
9V-SWZ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SNA	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SNB	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SNC	SIN	31 Dec 22	0

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

Boeing 787-10s

All of SIA’s 15 Boeing 787-10s are currently active.

Aircraft	Location	Last flew	Days ago
9V-SCA	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCB	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCC	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCD	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCE	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCF	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCG	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCH	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCI	SIN	24 Dec 22	7
9V-SCJ	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCK	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCL	SIN	31 Dec 22	0
9V-SCM	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCN	SIN	30 Dec 22	1
9V-SCO	SIN	30 Dec 22	1

‘Last flew’ dates relate to the aircraft’s last revenue flight.

9V-SCI spent six weeks in Victorville, USA, between late August and early October 2022, presumably for a second stint of repairs by Boeing.

The aircraft is one of 8 worldwide affected by a manufacturing defect in its tail, and was first repaired by Boeing in the USA back in October 2020.

Alice Springs storage

There are still 11 SIA group aircraft in storage at Alice Springs, as outlined in the following table.

SIA Group aircraft stored in Alice Springs
Airline	Aircraft	Total
	Airbus A380	2
	Boeing 777-200	4
	Boeing 777-300ER	2
	Airbus A320	3

Some of these (like the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft) should be returned to service, while some others (like the Boeing 777-200s) will eventually be sold.

Fleet development plan

Based on the in-service fleet of aircraft at 31st December 2022 and SIA’s latest financial update, here’s how the SIA fleet should develop over the next three months, between now and March 2023.

In Service Passenger Aircraft Fleet

Aircraft Type	Fleet Totals
	31 Dec 2022	Leaving	Joining	31 Mar 2023
A350-900 LH	30		1	31
A350-900 MH	24			24
A350-900 ULR	7			7
A380-800	12			12
737-8 MAX	16			16
737-800 NG	7			7
777-300ER	23			23
787-10	15		2	17
All Types	134		3	137

Three aircraft will be delivered to the airline between now and the end of March 2023, an Airbus A350 Long Haul aircraft and two Boeing 787-10 aircraft.

However, Singapore Airlines has noted that of these three, only one of the Boeing 787-10s is due to enter passenger service by 31st March 2023, with the other two likely to start flying revenue flights in April 2023.

Here’s how the latest total SIA Group orders for fleet modernisation and replacement looks.

SIA Group Orders
(incl. via lessors)

Delivery of Boeing 777-9s, which will sport the airline’s latest Suites and Business Class products, has slipped to 2025 art the earliest.

Singapore Airlines has been progressively returning aircraft to its operating fleet in 2022, including by taking delivery of no fewer than 11 brand new aircraft.

While it’s sad to see the end of the road for more of the carrier’s retired Airbus A380s, none of which are likely to find a future operator, the good news is that we’re on the final straight for cabin refits of the 12 remaining superjumbos, with only one left to complete.

Next year will likely see the final four passenger A350s delivered to SIA, for an impressive fleet of 65 such aircraft, while there should also be a welcome restart for Boeing 787 deliveries.

Overall, SIA is now actively flying 123 passenger aircraft, including practically all its Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s.

Stay tuned for the next fleet update in 2023.

(Cover Photo: Plane’s Portrait Aviation Media / Malcolm Lu)