Singapore Airlines, Adelaide’s longest-serving international airline, is set to celebrate 40 years of flying to and from the South Australian capital on Sunday, March 31. The airline’s inaugural service, operated by a Boeing 747, landed in Adelaide on March 31, 1984, less than 18 months after the opening of Adelaide Airport’s international terminal.
Since then, Singapore Airlines has been a strong supporter of the South Australian market, operating continuously except for a brief period during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. In October 2023, the carrier upgraded its aircraft on the Singapore-Adelaide route from the 303-seat Airbus A350 to the 337-seat Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
According to the South Australian Tourism Commission, the tourism expenditure generated by Singapore Airlines’ daily direct flights is estimated to be $96 million per year for the state. Singapore is currently South Australia’s fourth-largest market in terms of visitor expenditure, with the state welcoming 15,000 visitors from Singapore in the year ending December 2023.
Adelaide Airport Managing Director, Brenton Cox, praised Singapore Airlines for its incredible support over the past four decades, stating, “Singapore Airlines was a ground breaker in providing South Australians with one-stop connections to Europe and the UK, rather than having to backtrack via Sydney or Melbourne. In 2018, Singapore Airlines chose Adelaide as their global launch port for its brand new A350MH aircraft.”
Louis Arul, Singapore Airlines Regional Vice President South West Pacific, expressed delight in celebrating the 40-year partnership with Adelaide, adding, “Travel demand into, and out of, Adelaide continues to remain robust and we’re happy to add 3 frequencies a week, bringing a total of 10 services per week from October 2024.”
SA Minister for Tourism, Zoe Bettison, highlighted the substantial benefits Singapore Airlines has brought to South Australia, with the current schedule of daily direct flights generating an estimated $96 million in tourism expenditure per year, expected to grow with the increase in flights from October.
