Just over a week ago I wrote about how Singapore Airlines was expected to announce a new nonstop flight between Singapore and Seattle, and that’s exactly what they’ve done today.
Singapore Airlines will begin flying nonstop between Singapore and Seattle as of September 3, 2019. The route will initially operate 3x weekly, and will then increase to 4x weekly as of October 2019.
Singapore Airlines will be using an Airbus A350-900 for the route, though not the “ULR” version that they’re using for the nonstop flights to Los Angeles and Newark (and select frequencies to San Francisco). This plane will feature 253 seats, including 42 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats, and 187 economy seats.
Singapore Airlines’ A350 business class
The schedule for this new 8,070 mile flight will be as follows:
SQ28 Singapore to Seattle departing 9:25AM arriving 9:05AM
SQ27 Seattle to Singapore departing 10:40AM arriving 5:30PM (+1 day)
The flight will initially operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays in both direction, and as of October, it will also operate on Sundays.
Tickets for this new flight are expected to go on sale as of November 7, 2018.
This new Seattle flight represents Singapore Airlines’ sixth US gateway (after Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Newark, and San Francisco), and their fourth nonstop route to the US (after Los Angeles, Newark, and San Francisco).
By December 2018, Singapore Airlines will operate 53 flights per week to the US, including 27 nonstop flights from Singapore to the US. Then with this new flight, that number will increase to 57 per week.
This is a fantastic development for SeaTac, and seems like logical, conservative growth, especially since the route will only operate 3-4x per week.
In addition to Seattle being the closest major “lower 48” gateway to Asia, Singapore Airlines also has a partnership with Alaska Airlines. So they should have no trouble getting feed for this flight, given how extensive Alaska Airlines’ route network is from the region.
What do you make of Singapore Airlines’ new flight to Seattle?
This is so offensive to Detroit q
@Malc Should be 14-15 hours.
Does anyone know how long this flight will be?
Now if only we could redeem premium cabins on SQ metal through Mileage Plan...
SQ is smart, placing its arrival at 905am. That's about 1 hours before the peak time window for international arrivals. I think at that time, they only have to compete with a couple of Delta flights.
SQ used to fly to Vancouver via ICN. It was pulled around 2007 with the financial crisis and never returned.
Too bad the International Arrivals Terminal which was supposed to be done by now, is now slated to be done in Aug 2020! https://q13fox.com/2018/09/11/sea-tacs-new-international-arrivals-terminal-behind-schedule-300m-over-budget/
BRB checking award charts for SQ from Seattle!
As someone who has lived in Seattle for almost 50 years, it has been AMAZING to watch it become a more and more recognized hub. So excited to have more world-class transport!
Do you think SQ would launch direct flights to Vancouver? They are partnered with Air Canada and could link with most of Canada that way.
Agree with Chub. Just survived my return from China through SEA, and it took us 1 3/4 hours to emerge from customs and security for our continuing flight. What a horrible re-entry to the USA, especially after experiencing the incredible new airports in China.
Love the SIN-SEA leg timing... perfect for not missing working hours. Show up in Seattle rested and get after it.
Personally I hate the second leg into SE Asia from E Asia, even with a flatbed seat, I would rather take the long flight and then perhaps a short one. Timing to SE Asia looks pretty good as well... can still catch an evening flight easily.
It's great that SQ is coming to SEA. That's the best city in North America to add though YVR would have been a good choice. The fact that SQ is adding a city is the best news because even a one stop flight somewhere (KIX, NGO, ICN, TPE, HKG would be ok).
The times are great because a 5 pm SIN arrival is when one's hotel would be ready. A 6 am arrival like a SQ LAX-SIN A340-500 flight I took was too early.
@Jim: You probably don't run across that routing because the search engine would automatically eliminate it. If you look at a map, it makes zero sense to fly SFO-SIN-KIX. It would probably double the flight time. SIN only makes sense from NA if there is something regionally close and also not highly served from NA, like say Depensar, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, cities in Thailand, Vietnam, or perhaps secondary cities in Oceania that don't receive direct...
@Jim: You probably don't run across that routing because the search engine would automatically eliminate it. If you look at a map, it makes zero sense to fly SFO-SIN-KIX. It would probably double the flight time. SIN only makes sense from NA if there is something regionally close and also not highly served from NA, like say Depensar, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, cities in Thailand, Vietnam, or perhaps secondary cities in Oceania that don't receive direct service (like Perth). No one wants to "backtrack" to China and Japan when there is a tonne of direct services to those places already.
Forget about redeeming AS miles for SQ anything other y. SQ will never release their long haul business to anyone other than miles and more.
I'm gonna call it now: Delta will launch this before Singapore Airlines does as their Narita-Singapore flight is now highly uncompetitive in the market (and that flight technically is a continuation of Seattle-Narita on Delta).
Whilst I love flying Delta on the fifth freedom from Narita to Singapore, I just don't see how they can remain competitive in Singapore with all these non-stops to the US on competitors. DL has a much better chance...
I'm gonna call it now: Delta will launch this before Singapore Airlines does as their Narita-Singapore flight is now highly uncompetitive in the market (and that flight technically is a continuation of Seattle-Narita on Delta).
Whilst I love flying Delta on the fifth freedom from Narita to Singapore, I just don't see how they can remain competitive in Singapore with all these non-stops to the US on competitors. DL has a much better chance of succeeding in the market I think because they can bring the feed in and the aircraft can RON in Singapore, similar to what their aircraft does now to maximize onward connections.
Does SQ not code-share with United much? I fly from IAD to Asia a few times a year in business, and I never come across a routing like from IAD to a SQ departure city in the US, like an IAD-SFO-SIN-KIX or something like that. SIN has great connections, so it's strange I never see routings where they feed on UA in the US to one of SQ's US departure points. I'd love to give SQ a try, but they simply don't have the routings.
Well unless Delta beats them to the punch using their own A359 with the Delta One Suites. Then we might see Singapore do a knee-jerk reaction like they did when UA launched SFO-SIN
so will we finally be able to redeem alaska miles on SQ?
Boring place tbh. Give me Melbourne anytime.
CX and Alaska recently expanded their codeshare oartnership. Interesting to see how SQ might want to wrestle CX for partnership with AS.
I wonder how hectic immigration will get with Cathay, JAL and SQ starting services to SEA. It's already unpleasant without them and now...
Someone finish the new international arrivals facility already