Singapore Airlines was the launch customer of the Airbus A380 and continues to be an important user of the type. According to the Star Alliance member’s latest schedule, it’ll have the world’s second-highest number of double-decker flights this year.

Its second-best position is despite pulling all planned superjumbo flights from its Dubai route this summer. This is, of course, another consequence of the war in Iran. There are so many other impacts that it seems unfair to choose a tiny number of them as examples. Nonetheless, they include Qatar Airways suspending passenger flights to 64 destinations, Virgin Atlantic ending flights to Riyadh after less than a year, and Emirates removing the A380 from 15 routes.

Singapore Airlines Removes The A380 To Dubai This Summer

Credit: GCMap

A few months ago, the carrier announced that the 471-seat type would be deployed to Dubai, with flights beginning on March 29. However, the route, which covers 3,157 nautical miles (5,847 km), has been suspended due to the war.

Singapore Airlines had expected to return to Dubai on May 2, but that has now been pushed back to June 2. However, given the volatility in the Gulf, it would be reasonable to assume that it will be pushed back again. It would not be surprising if flights did not operate during the summer at all.

The plan was for the A380 to be deployed from May 2, but the type has been removed. That is unsurprising, as it would have provided a considerable amount of capacity at a time when demand for flights to/from the Gulf has reduced significantly. And most Singapore Airlines passengers to/from Dubai are local. Instead, the 264-seat Boeing 777-300ER—which has been used on the route for ages—is scheduled for June 2 onward.

What’s The Latest With The A380?

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As of April 3, the latest information shows that Singapore Airlines has scheduled the A380 to Dubai from October 25. That’s when carriers switch to the next season’s schedules based on IATA slot seasons.

Of course, that’s a long way off, and much could—and probably will—change before then. It would be better to treat it as a placeholder schedule. In other words, one that is just temporary. The complete removal of the A380 is likely.

Related

Qatar Airways Suspends Flights To 64 Destinations [Full List & Map]

All airlines in the Gulf have been affected, and Qatar Airways is no exception. See all the destinations that are currently suspended.

So, What Routes Are Planned This Summer?

Credit: GCMap

According to Singapore Airlines’ latest schedule submission to Cirium Diio, the carrier now plans eight A380 routes from Changi. The removal of the type from Dubai means that superjumbo departures have fallen by 10%.

This reduction is intriguing. After all, after a three-year absence, A380 flights returned to Melbourne on March 29. It’d be easy to conclude that the aircraft destined for Dubai was switched to Victoria. But as Melbourne was already included in the above figure, it suggests that it’s not this straightforward. As such, will another A380 route materialize? Will somewhere else see the type more often? Time will tell.

Let’s focus on June to September. In this period, London Heathrow and Sydney will each have two daily A380 flights. Then there are the routes with a daily frequency: Delhi (no A380 service between June 21 and July 25), Frankfurt, Hong Kong (June 21-July 25 only), Melbourne, Mumbai (no A380 flights between July 26 and August 29), and Shanghai Pudong. Pudong will have more A380 flights than at any point since 2019, but that was already planned.

Notice that the double-decker that would have gone to Delhi will temporarily be flown to Hong Kong instead. This is the same setup that was available last year, although regular service was available in the past. But it is currently unclear what will happen with the aircraft that would have gone to Mumbai. That’s a month-plus gap.