Singapore Airlines Expanding In New York With 3x Daily Flights

I think this one of many examples of where airlines are doing what they have to do in order to try and make money in a very challenging environment. The demand for business travel is muted and likely to remain so, but it is possible there is another angle to SQ adding a second NYC area nonstop and that has to do with shifts in business, notably in financial services, perhaps, away from HKG and further into SIN and that's potentially why SQ seems some additional demand. Cargo is likely to be another factor. The hedge funds, private equity, and venture capital sectors potentially more so than the traditional banks and brokerages. I think having a second option on an ULH service is a positive. Some prefer the late night departure as it, in theory allows you to get to sleep right away. Don't think anyone really cares whether it is daylight or darkness outside the entire journey, as most people don't look out the window for 18+ hours straight. Too early to tell if this second nonstop is a sign of anything specific to business travel demand or just a way to deploy a plane where it has a chance to earn money.

1) Singapore may see itself as a better connecting option relative to Hong Kong given all that is going on in Hong Kong right now. Connections to Southeast Asia, Australia, etc.

2) Haven taken some of these flights in the past, the right move is to fly from EWR and arrive at JFK. The key with the morning departure from EWR, however, is to essentially not sleep the night before and to sleep immediately once you get on after the first meal service (which is how the flight service would be set up anyway). Get as much sleep as you can, wake up, get another meal, maybe go back to sleep later, wake up again, meal, land. You more or less do the same thing on the return.

Do you know if the new Newark flights will be VTL or not?

There is just lots of demands for expats in Singapore to go home again especially during the summer!

It is just a smart use of the aircraft. The JFK flights are subsidized by SQ's current contract with a pharmaceutical company, and maybe EWR flights will also have similar contract. Now Singapore and New York are connected with two daily nonstop flights - one daytime and one late night.

Hopefully I can fly the nonstop JFK flight (a tad longer than EWR flights) this year.

When you say a plane "includes X seats", are there other seats in addition? A Toyota Camry includes two front seats, and has two front seats and two back seats.

My partner is booked on the Newark to Singapore flight in May and I really hope its VTL because she won't be able to go if she has to do a protracted quarantine in Singapore. We booked it last year assuming/hoping that the restrictions would be significantly eased by then. She is an ex-pat who hasn't been home to Singapore in 2 years and is very anxious to be able to go. She almost got to go on the VTL flight from London back in November but was stymied when New York state screwed up her vaccination records so she didn't have the required "Smart Health Card" that Singapore required for the VTL.

This is probably directly related to the CX/Hong Kong announcement restricting transit pax and not cargo. The ULRs can't fit that much cargo due to needing to carry extra fuel. Even without VTL, people can still transit Singapore.

Ben, NYC-SIN may not be all darkness even with the red-eye-ish timing. It's probably going east (rapid sunrise/sunset cycle) and also after March, everything polar will have long daylight.

I'd be curious as to what is the flight path.

Both the nonstops have been on the schedule for a while (I'm flying back from MLE at the end of March so have been keeping an eye on them). I just assumed that one of them would be nixed as the time got closer. Is it confirmed that they'll both be sticking around?

Under normal circumstances, I could absolutely see the market for all 3 flights. Unfortunately, with the crazy quilt of ever changing COVID requirements/limits/lockdowns, there is no way that SQ will fill many of these seats. Not only is Singapore an issue to travel to, but most nations you would connect to from there offer challenges to entry as well. The consensus of most people I talk to is that international traveling is generally a PITA right now and Asia is simply to be avoided for the duration. Sure, you COULD theoretically travel to Singapore or other nations in the region. But it wouldn't be worth doing unless you absolutely have to.

this is excellent news.

The demand must be robust for passengers & cargo to JFK since connections are very limited for Singapore at JFK.

Connectivity available to east coast & midwest via United at Newark Liberty.

Star alliance dominating the Singapore market

The 10:30a flight from EWR to SIN is pretty much limited to those in NYC area or within 1-hr flight to EWR. The evening flight outta JFK opens up a lot more connectivity even on separate tickets using Delta or JetBlue. SQ currently has the lowest price right now from NYC to SE Asia in premium economy, usually below $1200 RT.

Hope everything functions well and timely at JFK. SIA, in my experience, does not handle things well with two major flights departing within 90 minutes.

I imagine this about taking market share to SE Asia away from Hong Kong., Guangzhou and Shanghai.

Lots and lots of connecting demand from Singapore to rest of Asia/Australia. It's been nearly two years - at this point the restrictions in various countries is irrelevant. If you have go to one of those countries and they allow you in, you're going, quarantine or not.

Hopefully they release decent J award seat availability to star alliance partners for these routes (I know unlikely). Would love to redeem for connecting flights to India for 55k Turkish Miles & Smiles miles in J.

The EWR flight is not VTL.

It's good to see additional flights to Singapore. I hope they will add these to the VTL program. I've been wanting to visit again.

I don't understand this either but kudos to SQ for putting a lot of faith in NYC! I live here and I'm still working remotely (though technically the building I work in Manhattan is open to employees but only to those who volunteer to work in-person.) I hope this works out for SQ. Personally I always thought it made more sense to focus on EWR given the star alliance network already present there.

This is all about the sunset of Hong Kong as a regional business hub of any importance. Most major corporations are done there and are moving to Singapore.

I just went to the SQ website and it isn't showing the VTL flag for any of the New York flights, JFK or EWR. The website doesn't seem to have a clear list of VTL flight numbers and is only telling you to search the schedule.

Singapore as a tourist and business destination sure seems to be on the rise lately, and this surely expands on that. Pre-COVID, I wonder why JFK-SIN wasn’t already being flown nonstop. Now, If only they could add some sort of special onboard lounge/bar space to these A350s (like on VS’s A350s or VA’s old 777s) so passengers can stretch out, which is critical for this flight. Excellent move by SQ!

Yeah, this is partially a response given what's happening in Hong Kong. Singapore is establishing itself as the new transit (and in their hopes, financial) hub for that hemisphere.

Reading this my immediate reaction was, 'What??' but realised that was borne of different perspectives. My reaction was that it was great to have three SQ options for travel to New York. I see your point about options for onward travel from Singapore, but this is something for destination New York as much as it is destination Singapore.

I would book the flight from EWR and return to JFK. I prefer overseas flights that arrive in the late afternoon. That way I can clear customs, check into my hotel, grab something to eat and go to bed between 7 and 9pm local time. I find it helps me adjust to the time change quicker than flying a red eye, arriving at sunrise and fight to stay awake all day. I don’t sleep well on planes and not all hotels allow you to check in the morning, so you are stuck in limbo.

I've got to think that this is a response to what is happening in Hong Kong - positioning Singapore to pick up Hong Kong's loss in both business and connectivity. A gamble to be sure in todays climate, but also shrewd business planning.

Lots of people talking about how the Hong Kong situation is helping SQ and Singapore grow, and I agree. But there's an even more important airline to consider: Starlux (the new Taiwanese full-service airline). I gotta say, they launched at the right time because they will surely grow at the expense of CX and HK in the coming years, especially now that they're starting to do long-haul. Perhaps even turning into the best long-term "replacement", given that their TPE hub is basically next door, and significantly closer than SIN. They might even be able to join Oneworld (assuming CZ doesn't), I know, it's so sad and hard to believe. It's interesting how recently in Asia, at least in terms of potential for their respective aviation markets to grow (influenced by factors like economy/business environment, travel propensity of locals, and inbound tourism), it feels like ​there has been this general shift in which places like Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea are "hot" and on the rise, while places like Hong Kong and Japan are declining. Meanwhile, the mighty PRC is just being the mighty PRC. I wonder how long this will last.

I personally believe the addition of the second daily service is to facilitate transit passenger to/from Asia. While Singapore kind of tightened its border, it's still one of the freest transit options (the other maybe ICN while Tokyo is not convenient for all because flights are dispersed in two different airports) for anyone traveling into/out of Asia, as even Hong Kong suspended almost all international flights...