Back in 2021, Singapore Airlines started operating its first narrow-body passenger aircraft in over 30 years, with the introduction of the first of nine former SilkAir Boeing 737-800s into its fleet between Changi and Phuket – part of a plan to simplify the Group’s airline divisions into one full-service and one low-cost carrier.

Later that year another single-aisle type, the Boeing 737-8 MAX, also entered service with the airline.

We thought it would be interesting to have a look back at the last time the mainline carrier was operating single-aisle jets, and for that you have to wind the clock back to 1990 and take a look at an unusually small fleet of four Singapore Airlines Boeing 757s.

Which airline orders only four planes and then only keeps them for five years? Let’s take a look at the strange case of this tiny fleet within SIA.

Why was Singapore Airlines flying the Boeing 757?

In the early 1980s, Singapore Airlines was evaluating a regional aircraft to replace its fleet of six Boeing 727s. The new aircraft would also complement – or in some cases replace – the airline’s long-haul fleet on shorter “trunk” routes, such as Singapore to Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta, as well as select longer intra-Asia routes with thinner demand.

Based on aircraft available on the market at the time, the choice was whittled down to two aircraft types – the twin-aisle Airbus A310 and the single-aisle Boeing 757-200.

Both were relatively new products at the time, entering service in 1983, but rather than commit to one or the other, as per standard industry practice, Singapore Airlines rather uniquely decided on an interesting strategy. Try a few of both!

Hang on, what is a Boeing 757?

If you’re based in Singapore or the Asia-Pacific region – it’s not a stupid question!

Roundly unpopular in this part of the world, the Boeing 757 made its name in North America and Europe as a high-density single-aisle aircraft with sufficient range to comfortably serve even the longest intra-continental routes, carrying upwards of 230+ passengers for seven hours in some cases.

In particular the aircraft became favoured in the ‘Inclusive Tour’ market, with airlines linked to package holiday companies, a model not really seen in Asia but very popular in Europe.

1,050 of the type were eventually produced, but only 77 (7%) of those were originally delivered to Asia-Pacific carriers.

That means 13 out of every 14 passenger Boeing 757s ever built performed the bulk of their flying outside this region.

As such, Singapore Airlines became the first ever Asia-Pacific operator of the Boeing 757, which Boeing was selling as a direct replacement for the fuel-thirsty three-engined Boeing 727, promising 25% better fuel efficiency on a 500-mile flight with increased passenger capacity.

Boeing said, for example, that its larger 757 would use only 5.2 tonnes of fuel flying from Singapore to Penang, compared to 6.9 tonnes on a 727, plus it only needed two pilots – not three.

Overall, it meant a 45% reduction in operating cost on a per-seat basis between the two types.

Two types arrived in 1984

On 12th November 1984, Singapore Airlines took formal delivery of its first Boeing 757 in Seattle. After a short period of crew training, the aircraft was then delivered to Singapore on 24th November 1984, with the first of its ‘competitor’ type the Airbus A310 arriving in Singapore just a five days later on 29th November 1984.

The Boeing 757s had 180 seats, while the larger Airbus A310s had room for 218 passengers, with both types offering a First Class and Economy Class section.

Singapore Airlines even commemorated the launch of these two aircraft types with combined models on a shared plinth, with the 757 towering above the A310, as shown below.

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Boeing was clearly on a mission to win hearts among the Singapore public, taking out full-page newspaper adverts to promote a plane it may have already thought was on the back-foot at SIA HQ.

FLY THE LEADER
Congratulations, Singapore Airlines, on your choice of the Boeing 757.
Starting today, even more passengers than ever before will be able to fly Singapore Airlines to destinations like Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta. And do so in complete comfort, thanks to improved seat spacing, legroom and overhead stowage.
No wonder the advanced technology Boeing 757 is your choice for today and the future.

Boeing advert in the Singapore Monitor, 9th December 1984

The 757 entered service on the day of the newspaper ad – 9th December 1984.

Singapore Airlines Boeing 757-200 aircraft

Registration	Delivered to SIA	Departed SIA	Fate
9V-SGK	12 Nov 1984	28 May 1990	Sold to ILFC American Trans Air Delta Air Lines
9V-SGL	26 Nov 1984	1 Dec 1989	Sold to ILFC American Trans Air Delta Air Lines
9V-SGM	11 Dec 1984	31 Oct 1989	Sold to ILFC American Trans Air Delta Air Lines
9V-SGN	12 Dec 1984	12 Mar 1990	Sold to ILFC American Trans Air Delta Air Lines

These aircraft were the 44th, 45th, 47th and 48th Boeing 757s built, added to the fleet in quick succession over a period of just one month.

Fun fact: SIA’s first Boeing 757, 9V-SGK, suffered an engine failure during a crew training flight in Seattle on 17th November 1984. It was then delivered to Singapore a week later (with two working engines!).

Where did SIA fly the Boeing 757?

In December 1986, when the airline’s four Boeing 757s had been in service for around two years, the route network for the type comprised just four cities:

• Jakarta: 20/wk
• Kuala Lumpur: 38/wk
• Medan: 4/wk
• Penang: 6/wk

With 136 flight sectors per aircraft per week, an average of 19 per day, the four aircraft were working consistently on the airline’s shortest routes. Most prominently, the jet was used on the Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta sectors.

Average daily utilisation was 5.2 hours per aircraft, which is quite low by today’s standards.

During the same month, SIA was also operating its four ‘comparison’ Airbus A310-200 aircraft alongside the 757s, though the route network was already quite different, with those wide-body aircraft regularly visiting 13 different cities.

• Bangkok: 14/wk
• Beijing (via Shanghai): 1/wk
• Bombay (now Mumbai): 1/wk
• Brunei: 7/wk
• Calcutta (now Kolkata): 2/wk
• Dhaka: 2/wk
• Jakarta: 8/wk
• Kuala Lumpur: 7/wk
• Manila: 5/wk
• Seoul (via Kaohsiung): 2/wk
• Seoul (via Taipei): 2/wk

With some longer flights in the mix, the A310s were flying an average of 30 flights per aircraft per week (around 4 per day).

What were the decision factors?

With A310s and 757s operating side-by-side, Singapore Airlines could make a decision over its ultimate future regional fleet direction.

The Airbus A310 won the day, for what we understand to be the following reasons:

• Passenger feedback favoured the wide-body cabin of the A310
• With two aisles, the A310 boasted quicker passenger loading and unloading
• The Boeing 757 lacked ‘containerised’ underfloor cargo capability, and had 25% less freight capacity

Indeed by mid-1985 SIA had increased Airbus A310 operation on its Kuala Lumpur flights at the expense of the Boeing 757, specifically to allow it to carry more containerised cargo on the route.

While the airline didn’t remain particularly wedded to its initial batch of shorter-range A310-200s, the improved A310-300 with a higher certified takeoff weight and 5,000 nautical mile range, a 50% increase, sealed the deal for SIA.

The carrier went on to operate 23 of the type, comprising six A310-200s (four of which had already been delivered) and 17 A310-300s. The final A310 was retired from the Singapore Airlines fleet in August 2005.

Two Boeing 757s received the updated SIA livery

All four of SIA’s Boeing 757s were originally delivered in the airline’s older ‘second generation’ livery, which was applied fleet-wide at the time.

The airline hasn’t adapted its livery much over the years, but the most significant change happened in 1987 when the yellow fan line beneath the passenger windows and the Kris motif were switched to a metallic gold colour, and the italic Singapore Airlines typeface on the mid-fuselage was enlarged and modernised slightly.

An orange “cheatline” was also added directly below the passenger windows and to the rear section of the tail plane.

Although their tenure in the airline was short-lived, two of the Boeing 757s (9V-SGK and -SGN) picked up the new livery before they left the fleet a couple of years later.

9V-SGL and -SGM, on the other hand, were not repainted and left the fleet in the original pre-1987 colours.

Since then there has been very little adaptation to the SIA livery, the most notable change in 2007 being a relocation of the Singapore Airlines titles from mid-fuselage to the front, a larger typeface and the SIA logo being removed from the engines.

What happened to the aircraft?

All four of SIA’s Boeing 757s were sold to International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC), the world’s largest aircraft lessor, now known as AerCap.

They didn’t leave the fleet in age or original delivery order, with 9V-SGL departing first in December 1989, followed by -SGK and -SGN nearly six months later in May/June 1990, then finally -SGM left in October 1990.

ILFC placed these four aircraft with American Trans Air, who operated them on worldwide charters for around six years. The airline specialised in military (troop) charters for the U.S. national defence.

In 1996, all four aircraft were sold to Delta Air Lines, where they then served for over 20 years before being scrapped in 2017, having completed around 40,000 flights each since first entering service with SIA.

In comparison, Singapore Airlines typically retains aircraft for only around 15 years from new. These aircraft achieved more than double that!

Singapore Airlines only recently reintroduced narrow-body aircraft into its fleet with the Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-8 MAX, so it’s interesting to look back three decades to the carrier’s previous experience with a single-aisle jet.

Ultimately SIA opted for the wide-body Airbus A310 over the Boeing 757, but the four aircraft it trialled went on to have an impressively long life, initially with American Trans Air but most notably with Delta.

It would have been interesting to see a larger Boeing 757 fleet in SIA, though the airline seems to have had sound reasons to instead opt for the Airbus A310, and in any event even a beefed-up 757 fleet would probably have only served until the mid-2000s regardless, given SIA’s preference for younger aircraft.

This time round, with an eventual fleet of 29 Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, Singapore Airlines seems much more committed to a future including single-aisle jets in the decades ahead. The MAXs even sport flat-beds in Business Class – a rarity on narrow-body aircraft.

Did you ever fly on a Singapore Airlines Boeing 757? Let us know your experiences in the comments section below.

(Cover Photo: Aero Icarus)