Singapore Airlines to start Airbus A350-900 aircraft from Hyderabad

The inaugural flight of Airbus A350-900 will take off from Hyderabad at 2310 hours on 30 October.

“We are delighted to enhance our services to Hyderabad with our wide-body A350 aircraft. This is a significant milestone for us as it reinforces our commitment to the market, more so after SilkAir’s integration with Singapore Airlines a year ago,” said Sy Yen Chen, General Manager of India for Singapore Airlines

“In line with the company’s commitment to product and service excellence, the Airbus A350 medium-haul aircraft, combined with our award-winning inflight service, will provide enhanced comfort to travelers from Hyderabad. Furthermore, the introduction of a wide-body aircraft in this sector also opens up a wider range of opportunities and capabilities for SIA Cargo,” he said.

For the remainder of the week, the airline will continue to operate its B737-8 narrow-body services.

“From 30 October 2022, Singapore Airlines will restore 100 percent of its pre-pandemic frequency from India, and will operate 96 flights weekly from eight cities across the country,” the company said in a release.

The news also comes at a time when Singapore Airlines (SIA) is in talks with India’s TATA Group over a potential merger of Vistara airlines. SIA holds a 49% stake in the airlines, while TATA Group holds the other 51%.

“The discussions seek to deepen the existing partnership between SIA and Tata, and may include a potential integration of Vistara and Air India,” SIA said in a statement to the Singapore Exchange.

The statement also notes that any deal will be subject to permission from the competition watchdog of Singapore and concerned authorities in India.

According to the International Air Transport Association, India will become the world’s third-largest aviation market by 2024 for both international and domestic traffic.

With Inputs from PTI.