SIA Continues Plan to Retrofit Airbus A-380 Aircraft, Moved 1 Plane From Australia Back to S’pore

Slowly but surely, the aviation industry, which has been forced to contend with the repercussions of the pandemic for so long, is getting back on its feet, especially with Budget 2021’s S$870m support package.

As vaccines begin to make their way to pandemic-hit countries, the aspect of tourism has once again looked plausible… and perhaps even somewhat safe. After all, vaccination does grant an individual immunisation against the COVID-19 disease, a notion that we’ve awaited for far too long.

Yet even so, it should be noted that though vaccinated people are pretty much impervious to the disease, they are not by any means non-infectious. That is to say, they may be immune to COVID-19, but they can still spread it.

So in a sense, tourism still has a pretty long way to go.

And so it’s rather unexpected that Singapore Airlines (SIA), a prestigious airline that was reduced to food catering services in light of the pandemic, would choose such a time to retrofit its aircraft.

Amidst these tumultuous times when flights are taken only when necessary, it’s a tad bit hard to understand their decision to implement extra costs… when revenue has yet to take off.

SIA Continues Plan to Retrofit Airbus A-380 Aircraft, Moved 1 Plane From Australia Back to S’pore

According to The Straits Times, SIA will continue to retrofit three more Airbus A-380 aircraft, in spite of the ongoing pandemic.

Lest you’re unaware, retrofitting refers to the incorporation of a component or accessory that was not present during the initial manufacturing process. In other words, it’s like an upgrade, but more atas-sounding.

In SIA’s case, they intend to install the three aircraft with newer cabin products. By its  2022/2023 financial year, the carrier plans to retrofit another two A-380 planes.

SIA said, “The aircraft, registration 9V-SKQ, has been moved to Sydney to undergo routine checks following its storage before returning to Singapore where it will be retrofitted with the latest A-380 cabin product.

“This is part of our plan to have all 12 remaining A-380s in our fleet fitted with the latest A-380 cabin product.”

Little Plausibility?

Prior to the pandemic, the airline reportedly boasted an entire fleet of 19 A-380s. Because of the pandemic, however, seven were eventually sent to long-term storage at Alice Springs, Australia, while the rest were parked at Changi Airport.

Last November, it was announced that 26 planes – including seven A-380s – would be retired.

Out of the twelve A-380s left, four have been retrofitted, while five others were sent to SIA with the “newer cabin configuration”.

According to aviation analyst Shukor Yusof from Endau Analytics, premium business travel, which A-380s specialise in, is probably unable to return to its prior popularity before the pandemic broke out.

This is due to the post-COVID environment, which has seen virtual platforms such as Zoom rise in prominence and usability.

“No airline needs an A-380 in the post-COVID environment because people have successfully done deals and conducted business over virtual platforms such as Zoom,” he said.

“There’s no future for the A-380, but airlines that already have them have to find ways to make best use of a very bad asset.”

And so the question begets; why retrofit these A-380 airplanes when they are so close to being obsolete?

The answer, according to Mr Mohshin Aziz, director of the Pangolin Aviation Recovery Fund, may lie in SIA’s intent to differentiate itself from other airlines.

By retrofitting its A-380 planes, SIA would effectively be keeping an exclusive product – a notion that could help it gain an edge over its competitors.

“When you park a plane, there’s still a lot of costs involved,” he said.

“If you are going to lose money anyway, you might as well spend some money to upgrade the plane so that when the market is ready, you have a good product.”

Struggling

Lest you’re unaware, in light of the aviation industry’s woes, the Singaporean government has stepped in to lessen their load.

According to the Ministry of Transport (MOT), an S$870 million support package will be provided to the aviation industry.

The Jobs Support Scheme (JSS), which has been extended, will provide 30% wage support from April to June 2021, and 10% from July to September 2021.

The Aviation Workforce Retention Grant will enhance the subsidies to Singaporean and permanent resident workers to 50% from April to September 2021.

Payouts will be made in two separate tranches: once in September (for the Apr to Jun period) and once in December (for the Jul to Sep period).

The grant is expected to cost S$330 million.

Meanwhile, the rest will go to the OneAviation Support Package which provides cost relief for the industry.

Some of the measures in the package include:

• Extension of rebates on fees and charges at Changi and Seletar airports by one year
• Extension of rebates on fees payable by pilots, air traffic controllers and aircraft maintenance engineers by one year

The package hopes to help companies in the industry retain their core competencies, maintaining Singapore’s position as an aviation hub.

“We must avoid further reductions to the aviation workforce so that companies will not lose their core local capabilities, which have taken many years to build up. If the sector weakens its capabilities, this will hamper its ability to recover.” said MOT.

Here’s hoping that there will be a swift upwind for the aviation industry soon, and that soon enough, flights will resume as per normal once again.

Feature Image: SpaceKris / Shutterstock.com