Singapore Airlines (SQ, Singapore Changi) has taken delivery of the first of seven A350-900ULR aircraft it has on order from Airbus (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac). The carrier thus became the first ever operator of the ULR variant globally.
The aircraft, 9V-SGA (msn 220) left Toulouse in the evening of September 22 operating on a polar route to showcase its long-haul capabilities. It arrived at Singapore's Changi airport on September 23 in the afternoon after a 16 hour 28-minute delivery flight, FlightRadar24 ADS-B data shows.
The A350-900ULR is configured for just 94 Premium Economy and 67 Business Class passengers.
Starting October 11, the aircraft will be used to resume non-stop services between Changi and New York Newark. The route was last served in November 2013 with SIA's A340-500s which have since been retired and returned to Airbus. The first two A350-900ULRs will be deployed on the Newark flights before Singapore Airlines will resume non-stop service to Los Angeles International on November 2, gradually increasing the frequency on the route from 4x to 10x weekly by December 7.
SIA will also operate three additional weekly services to San Francisco with the new premium configured ULR aircraft starting November 28, complementing a daily service already operated by its three-class A350-900s, of which it currently operates twenty-one.
In addition to the new non-stop flights, Singapore Airlines also operates a daily A380-800 service to New York JFK via Frankfurt International and five weekly services to Houston Intercontinental via Manchester International using three-class A350s.
