SIA swaps passenger plane orders for freighters

Singapore Airlines will replace its fleet of Boeing 747-400F freighters with the newly launched, more fuel-efficient Airbus A350F freighter aircraft. The national carrier has signed a letter of intent with the French planemaker to purchase 7 A350F freighters, with options for another 5, the mainboard-listed airline group said in a bourse filing on Wednesday. It added that the deliveries are scheduled to begin in Q4 2025, making SIA the first airline to operate this new generation widebody freighter aircraft. The freighters, under the agreement, will be delivered in place of 15 A320neo and 2 A350-900 passenger aircraft that are in its order book. This allows, SIA noted, the airline group to manage its capital expenditure, while continuing with the essential freighter renewal. The A350F can carry a similar volume of freight as the Boeing 747-400F, but burns up to 40% less fuel and features a longer range. The renewal comes as the group reported a record cargo-flown revenue of over S$1.8b for the first half of financial year 2022 or up 51.2%, amid capacity crunch in air and ocean freight.<br/>