Singapore Airlines is set to launch another service to London’s Gatwick Airport shortly, which will operate throughout the upcoming IATA summer season. When combined with the four daily flights it already operates to London’s Heathrow Airport, the airline’s services to London will reach up to six daily flights.

The carrier will utilize its fleet of Airbus A350 aircraft on this long-haul route. The additional capacity will also allow the airline to take advantage of the sudden vacuum in capacity left by Middle Eastern carriers.

Another Service To London Gatwick

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London Gatwick Airport (LGW) is set to receive a second service from Singapore Airlines during the upcoming summer season. According to Mainly Miles, the airline will start off operating the second flight on a thrice-weekly service, before increasing it to a daily flight during the peak summer months of July and August. This would then essentially double the airline’s daily capacity to Gatwick during this period to cater to the peak travel demand.

The airline’s current daily service is operated using its fleet of Airbus A350-900 aircraft. It is scheduled to leave Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) late at night and arrive early in the morning at Gatwick (SQ-312). The return journey (SQ-309) leaves later in the morning and arrives back in Singapore early the following morning. The airline’s new (and second) service will also use an A350-900, and will depart SIN early morning (SQ-314) before arriving in Gatwick around midday. Meanwhile, the return journey (SQ-313) will leave London in the afternoon and arrive back in Singapore the following day, at around midday.

This additional service to Gatwick means the airline will be operating six daily flights to London during peak summer this year, complementing its existing four daily services to London Heathrow Airport (LHR). The additional flight will allow Singapore Airlines to capture more of the market demand that exists between the two cities.

Singapore – London Is In Demand

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Singapore – London is a very popular city pair, which sees high demand and competition. As such, this summer, a total of nine daily flights will be operated between the two cities by three airlines. Singapore Airlines comes out on top, accounting for six daily flights to and from the two London airports.

Furthermore, the airline also deploys its fleet of Airbus A380 aircraft to LHR on a twice-daily basis, significantly increasing its capacity. SIA’s services are joined by two daily flights from British Airways and a daily service from Qantas, which is a fifth freedom route originating from Sydney.

As seen in the above table, the city pair is a very competitive market, with a considerable amount of passenger demand. Therefore, this provides a good indication as to why an additional service to Gatwick will help Singapore Airlines gain a higher market share in the market, especially considering the situation in the Middle East.

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Capacity Vacuum Left By Middle Eastern Airlines

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Due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, the three super-connectors of the region — Emirates, Etihad Airways, and Qatar Airways — have seen their operations severely impacted. While Emirates and Etihad have recovered a decent portion of their operations, the same cannot be said for Qatar Airways.

For context, all three airlines operated A380 flights from their respective hubs to both Singapore and London. Therefore, with the connectivity in the Middle East currently impacted, Singapore Airlines will be able to tap into the demand that clearly exists, with assurance of high load factors and revenue.