Qantas increases A380 Singapore – Sydney services

Qantas is bumping up capacity on its Singapore – Sydney flights from this week, with additional Airbus A380 services on the route for the next three months, replacing Airbus A330s on selected flights and offering four cabin classes – including First Class and Premium Economy options.

The upgrade will only apply once per week in each direction, for a total of eight A380 flights per week on the Sydney route instead of the former seven.

This comes ahead of the carrier using Finnair Airbus A330s with new AirLounge Business Class seats on six of its seven QF82/81 flights between Singapore and Sydney, from 29th October 2023.

The schedule

Qantas currently operates 14 weekly flights between Singapore and Sydney, the daily QF2/1 Airbus A380 service which also operates to and from London, and the daily QF82/81 service which uses an Airbus A330.

Starting from this week, the QF82 flight from Singapore to Sydney will be upgauged to the Airbus A380 every Sunday, while the QF81 flight from Sydney to Singapore will receive the same treatment every Saturday, as shown in the schedule below.

Singapore – Sydney
10 Jul 2023 – 28 Oct 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	QF2 A380
SIN 19:30		SYD 05:10*
	QF82 A330
SIN 20:30		SYD 06:25*
	QF82 A380
SIN 20:45		SYD 06:25*

* Next day

Sydney – Singapore
10 Jul 2023 – 28 Oct 2023

			Days
			M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	QF81 A330
SYD 11:50		SIN 18:15
	QF81 A380
SYD 11:55		SIN 18:15
	QF1 A380
SYD 15:10		SIN 21:30

A380s fly a bit faster than the A330s, so you’ll also notice the slightly later departure time of both QF82 and QF81, on the days a superjumbo is operating.

In addition to the daily London flight, Qantas will be operating 15 weekly A380 departures from Singapore between now and late October 2023.

Here’s how the two aircraft look alongside one another capacity-wise.

Qantas A330 vs. A380

Cabin	Qantas A330-300	Qantas A380
First Class	—	14 seats
Business Class	28 seats	70 seats
Premium Economy	—	60 seats
Economy Class	269 seats	341 seats
Total	297 seats	485 seats

As you can see, Qantas is adding 64% capacity on the single day of the week the QF82/81 service is upgauged to the Airbus A380, including a significant 150% increase in Business Class.

Aside from Qantas, the Singapore – Sydney route is also served by:

• British Airways (7 x weekly)
• Scoot (10 x weekly)
• Singapore Airlines (28x weekly)

Qantas A380 cabin products

In common with Singapore Airlines, one thing COVID-19 has allowed Qantas to do is ensure its A380s returning into service are fitted with the latest cabin products, first introduced a few months before the pandemic hit.

The new cabins actually debuted on the QF1 London-Singapore-Sydney flight on 1st October 2019, but relatively few passengers got to enjoy it on a handful of aircraft before the entire superjumbo fleet had to be grounded only months later.

In Business Class the A380s feature the airline’s latest version of the popular Thompson Vantage XL Business Class seat.

This is similar to the current Qantas long-haul Business Class seat, which we recently reviewed on a flight from Perth to Singapore.

What is different is that Qantas Boeing 787s and Airbus A330s don’t have the A380’s lounge area, ideal for a mid-flight change of scenery or meeting, or to dine with a partner, friend or colleague.

This area also includes a self-serve bar, and is shared with First Class passengers.

Speaking of First Class, there’s no such option on the Qantas A330s, with this 14-seat cabin exclusive to the airline’s superjumbos.

Despite its age, the Qantas First Class product is quite innovative. We’ve flown it a couple of times (see our review) and while it doesn’t boast fully enclosed suites or double beds, it still holds up strongly against many competitors.

Qantas A380s also have a 60-seat Premium Economy cabin, a travel class not offered on A330 services.

Award tickets

Here are the one-way miles redemption rates and taxed payable for the Singapore – Sydney route, when travelling on a Qantas service.

Qantas Award Rates
(x 1,000 miles)

FFP	Singapore – Sydney
	Y	PY	J	F
	27 +S$157	43 +S$220	61 +S$249	87 +S$249
	20.75 +S$107	41.25 +S$107	62 +S$107	82.5 +S$107
	32 +S$220		64 +S$220	96 +S$220
	25.2 +S$132	51.3 +S$214	68.4 +S$220	102.6 +S$220

As you can see, Asia Miles provides the best value in Business Class for Qantas redemptions on this route, but Avios levies the lowest taxes and fees for only 1,000 more miles in the same cabin.

However, don’t forget Asia Miles is devaluing its programme from 1st October 2023, with the Oneworld partner award rates almost certainly getting a 20-30% hike in Business Class, in line with redemptions on the carrier’s own metal, so this could be a good opportunity to cash out at a decent rate.

Unfortunately we didn’t see any First Class awards available on these additional A380 flights, but with a big increase in Business Class capacity there are some redemptions in that cabin, both for Qantas members and Oneworld partners.

For comparison, a one-way Singapore to Sydney award flight in Singapore Airlines Business Class costs 68,500 miles + S$91 one-way.

Qantas is increasing capacity on its Singapore – Sydney route between now and the end of October, with an upgrade to the four-class Airbus A380 on one of the weekly QF82/81 flights, instead of the smaller two-class Airbus A330 normally used.

This will add First Class and Premium Economy seats on that flight number pairing, to supplement existing daily QF2/1 A380 services on the same city pair. To benefit you’ll have to be flying from Singapore to Sydney on a Sunday, or from Sydney to Singapore on a Saturday, when taking QF81/82.

From the start of the northern winter season in late October, full A330 operation returns to the QF82/81 flights, but six out of seven each week will use Finnair aircraft with the latest AirLounge Business Class seats.

(Cover Photo: Qantas)