CARRIER OF CHOICE
With its rich heritage, high-tech fleet and award-winning service, Singapore Airlines is the ideal way to start your journey to the city-state, says Gary Noakes
How Singapore Airlines meets the needs of premium passengers
IT IS NOW 70 YEARS SINCE
SINGAPORE AIRLINES first took to the skies, in the days when the Far East really was far and before the carrier entered our psyche with advertising based around its iconic “Singapore Girl”.
The carrier has built a sterling reputation over that time. It has won Business Traveller’s Best Asian Airline and Best Cabin Crew awards for the past decade, and those 70 years of heritage are today paired with a state-of-the-art fleet, while retaining a notion of service that harks back to an era when air travel really was something special.
As well as the anniversary of its founding, this year also marks 45 years of flying from Heathrow for the airline, as well as a 30-year presence at Manchester. There is plenty to celebrate – including new aircraft, new routes and new onboard products.
For many business travellers, the airline is the carrier of choice when heading to the Asia-Pacific region, as it has a major home advantage in its award-winning hub at Changi, which is always among the world’s favourite airports. The Gulf carriers may have taken some traffic away
from Asia-Pacific hubs, but having a 12- to 13-hour nonstop flight from the UK to Singapore means you have enough time to work and relax – something you do not get the benefit of if you transit through the Middle East, which entails a switch of aircraft after seven hours or so.
Changi itself is somewhere transit passengers could easily spend a pleasant few hours – its hotels, rooftop pool and outdoor areas make it one of the world’s most accommodating hubs (see our Changi feature on page 14).
It is also a great connecting point, with many Asia-Pacific business and leisure destinations within a few hours’ flying time (see our feature on page 46). Most of these are covered by Singapore Airlines and its regional sister carrier SilkAir – between them they serve almost 100 destinations in 35 countries from Changi. SilkAir alone flies to 51 destinations across Asia-Pacific and Australia and, from October 31, will add Vientiane and Luang Prabang in Laos to its network.
Singapore Airlines is also adding to its Changi routes. For anyone doing business in Australasia, September 21 saw the start of
the airline’s Capital Express route linking Singapore with Australian capital Canberra and the New Zealand capital of Wellington four times a week.
WELL TIMED
If flying is more about the journey than the arrival, then Singapore Airlines offers business passengers many advantages before they touch down. It begins with the flights from Heathrow and Manchester. London offers four flights a day and, from October 24, three of these will be Airbus A380s, with SQ318/9 operated as a Boeing 777-300ER.
Flight timings are critical to business travellers and, with four Heathrow departures a day, Singapore Airlines has made the most of its precious London slots. Two flights (SQ319 and SQ321) are overnight, meaning you can board, relax, have dinner and still get a good night’s sleep before arriving. The other two slots are morning departures, allowing a full day’s work on board plus a good amount of time to rest before arrival the following morning in Singapore. The UK-bound flights offer a similar choice of timings.
Heathrow passengers do not have it all their own way. Manchester departures offer the added advantage that Singapore Airlines will fly direct to the US from October 30, when it opens its services to Houston. The five flights a week will link to onward connections from the Texas hub. Another change to the Manchester service means that the flight to Changi becomes nonstop from this date.
For those who do not live near London or Manchester, an agreement with Flybe means passengers can connect from 19 regional UK airports seamlessly to Singapore Airlines’ flights from Paris, Amsterdam or Dusseldorf.
COMFORT ZONE
At London Heathrow’s new Terminal 2, the airline’s SilverKris lounge (opened in spring 2015) allows first and business class passengers to work, shower and dine before they board, maximising sleep time.
The welcome drink and hot towel, in First Class, are neat touches, as are the “productivity pods” for those travellers who need to work – these are part of the new design concept also found in the airline’s Sydney and Hong Kong lounges.
Productivity on board is key for many business travellers and all flights out of the UK offer wifi connectivity, while a free smartphone app takes care of the downtime by enabling passengers to review the in-flight entertainment (IFE) options prior to departure. They can also control the IFE system from their personal device once the app is installed.
When it comes to in-flight sleeping, Singapore Airlines has always strived to be innovative. The carrier introduced the world’s first A380 to its fleet in 2007 and used the giant aircraft’s extra space to the business traveller’s advantage by fitting one of the widest business class seats in the sky. Updated in 2013,
the 28-inch width provides room to stretch out, plus the space beneath it is big enough to fit a trolley bag.
Next year will see five factoryfresh A380s enter service with a new concept in first class. It was Singapore Airlines that first put private cabins and a double bed on to the superjumbo when it was the launch customer, so business travellers can probably expect something even more special in 2017.
Meanwhile, the airline is busy introducing a new fleet of 67 extra-wide body A350-900s into service. These next-generation twinjets seat 253 passengers, with 42 in business class, 24 in premium economy and 187 in economy. There are currently three A350s in the fleet, serving routes including Amsterdam and Dusseldorf, making these even more of an attractive proposition from the UK regions.
Seven of the A350s on order will be the ultra long-range type that will be used to fly nonstop to New York and Los Angeles from 2018. With average flying times touching 19 hours, these services will be the world’s longest commercial flights. The final layout for these seven aircraft has yet to be revealed, but it is likely that the bulk of the seating will be premium economy and upwards, including the new first class cabin.
PREMIUM PRODUCT
It took some time before Singapore Airlines followed its competitors and began installing a premium economy cabin. Introduced in August last year, it is being retrofitted to the fleet. The late entry into this market gave the carrier a chance to have a good look at rival products, giving it a distinct advantage in that it could tailor the concept exactly as it saw fit, without cannibalising its business class offering.
Premium economy seats are 18.5 or 19.5 inches wide, depending on aircraft type, with an eight-inch recline and the industry-standard premium economy seat pitch of 38 inches. Leather seats include a calf-rest and foot bar, two USB ports, a reading light, a cocktail table and additional stowage space for personal items. Also provided are noisecancelling headphones and a 13.3inch full HD monitor (the largest entertainment screen in its class).
Meal choice in premium economy really is a choice, as the menu includes the“Book the Cook” service, enabling advance ordering of up to nine main courses. Other benefits are priority check-in and baggage handling, a generous 35kg luggage allowance and freeflowing champagne.
The premium economy cabin is being progressively fitted to the carrier’s A380 and B777 fleets and will be on each new A350 aircraft. It appears on most UK services, with exact information on which ones being detailed at the time of booking.
WHOLESOME DINING
For premium customers, a big part of the airline’s attraction is its onboard service, with food and drink high on the list. Frequent flyers were instrumental in the launch of the new “Deliciously Wholesome”menu in conjunction with nutritionist Mayura Mohta. Dishes are designed to rejuvenate the body, using wholegrains, lean meats, fish, seeds and nuts. Deliciously Wholesome main courses can be preordered by first and business class passengers through Book the Cook, in addition to the normal in-flight menu.
An expert panel chooses the airline’s wine selection and many flights have crew members who are qualified sommeliers. The difference shows, because Singapore Airlines won seven accolades in last year’s Business Traveller Cellars in the Sky Awards, including the coveted Best Overall Wine Cellar.
LOYAL FOLLOWING
Another thing savvy business travellers care about is an airline’s frequent flyer programme, and KrisFlyer is a big attraction for the corporate traveller. It not only offers the chance to earn and burn points with fellow Star Alliance members, but Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Australia and Virgin America are also part of the scheme thanks to a former investment in Virgin Atlantic by Singapore Airlines.
In addition to points earning, its Corporate Travel Programme provides discounted fares in all cabins, with no fees for cancellations or changes, plus a dedicated helpdesk and online reporting tools.
When all the work is done, business travellers will have plenty of options to burn those miles, but Singapore Airlines, in its role as ambassador for the city-state, has a trump card. The Singapore Stopover Premium package offers business travellers some downtime in the country, including hotel, limo transfers, free wifi, late check-out and admission to more than 20 attractions (read about the city’s top sights on page 30).
The prospect of the flight home on one of the world’s best airlines might be attractive, but a package like this as part of your business trip is a good reason to stay a while.