Singapore Airlines unveils new long-haul cabins in S$2 billion-plus revamp; first flights from second half of 2027

Singapore Airlines (SIA) unveiled its all-new long-haul cabins at the Marina Bay Sands Exhibition Centre on November 6 — first class, business class, premium economy and economy — in an investment of more than S$2 billion (about US$1.5 billion), the carrier's biggest cabin upgrade ever. But the new cabins will only enter service progressively from the second half of 2027, later than originally planned.

First-class centre seats form the largest double bed in commercial aviation

The new first-class centre seats combine into a double bed 80 inches long and 60 inches wide, which SIA says is the largest double bed in commercial aviation. The ultra-long-range Airbus A350-900ULR will carry just 132 seats: four first-class suites, 70 business-class seats and 58 premium-economy seats, with no conventional economy cabin. The programme covers 72 aircraft: 41 retrofitted Airbus A350-900s (long-haul and ultra-long-range) and 31 Boeing 777-9s on order.

Launch delayed again as certification and supply chain bite

The new cabins were originally due to debut with the retrofitted A350 in the second quarter of 2026, then pushed to the first quarter of 2027 in May, and now to the second half of 2027. Chief Commercial Officer Lee Lik Hsin said the delay stems from industry-wide supply-chain constraints and seat certification: the new seats have been approved for the 777-9, but the aircraft itself is not yet certified, and approval for the A350 version of the seats is still outstanding. Despite the delay, Lee said the full retrofit programme would still be completed by the end of 2030 as originally targeted. The cabin designs have been in development since 2018 and were meant to debut on the 777-9 as early as 2021, but repeated delays to Boeing's new wide-body held them back; the airline's 12 A380s are not part of the programme.

Paid from cash reserves of more than S$9.1 billion

Lee told Reuters the investment of more than S$2 billion would be financed from cash reserves, which totalled S$9.1 billion at the end of June. When the A350 retrofit was announced in November 2024, the budget was S$1.1 billion; the total has grown because the scope has expanded from the A350 to include the 777-9 fleet. SIA was named the World's Best Airline for 2026 by Skytrax earlier this year. The first routes for the new cabins have not been announced.

(Sources: Singapore Airlines, Reuters, Simple Flying, Mainly Miles.)