EgyptAir plans to return to Sydney in 2027 with a one-stop service from Cairo via Singapore, joining a growing group of airlines using Asian intermediate points to expand in Australia ahead of Qantas’ Project Sunrise launch.
The proposed route would restore EgyptAir’s presence in Australia 25 years after it suspended 2X-weekly Cairo-Singapore-Sydney flights in July 2002. A subsequent plan to reroute the service through Kuala Lumpur did not materialize.
Schedules, frequencies and a launch date have yet to be announced. However, EgyptAir is understood to be planning to operate the route using Airbus A350-900 aircraft. CAPA Fleet Database shows the airline has four A350s in service after receiving its first in February 2026, with another 12 on order.
The one-stop service would create the only same-plane connection between North Africa and Australia and provide Sydney Airport with a record 54 airlines. It would also restore a nonstop link between Cairo and Singapore, opening a new connection to Southeast Asia.
“This is a major milestone for our international network, delivering greater choice for passengers and unlocking new opportunities for tourism, trade and cultural links between Australia, Egypt and the broader region,” Sydney Airport CEO Scott Charlton says.
The underlying Egypt-Australia market is growing—though it is unlikely to support an A350 service through local traffic alone. Sabre Market Intelligence data shows approximately 62,000 two-way O&D passengers traveled between Cairo and Australia in 2025, up 3.7% year over year.
Cairo accounted for about 67% of the wider North Africa-Australia market, which grew 10.7% to approximately 92,400 passengers. Traffic between Cairo and Singapore increased more strongly, rising 52.8% to about 26,100 passengers.
The figures provide EgyptAir with local demand at both ends of the route. However, the service’s viability could depend on a combination of connecting traffic through Cairo and the ability to attract passengers on the Singapore-Sydney sector should it obtain fifth-freedom rights.
Singapore Airlines, Qantas, British Airways and Scoot currently operate between Singapore and Sydney.
“Partnering with Sydney Airport is an important step in growing EgyptAir’s international network and strengthening links between Egypt, Singapore and Australia,” EgyptAir Chairman and CEO Capt. Ahmed Adel says. “The new service will make travel between our regions easier and support growing demand for tourism, business, education and visiting friends and relatives.”
The announcement forms part of a wider revival of same-aircraft, one-stop services connecting Europe with Australia through Asia. Turkish Airlines launched Melbourne flights via Singapore in March 2024 and began serving Sydney via Kuala Lumpur in November 2024. Its Sydney service will switch to Singapore in late October.
Finnair will enter the Australian market on Oct. 25 with daily Helsinki-Melbourne flights via Bangkok, while British Airways will return to Melbourne on Jan. 9, 2027, operating daily from London Heathrow via Kuala Lumpur. The latter will mark British Airways' first Melbourne service since 2006.
OAG data covering Europe-Australia services operated under a single flight number—including those with an intermediate stop—shows capacity increasing 11.8% year over year to about 753,300 two-way seats during summer 2026. A sharper rise is scheduled for winter 2026-27, when capacity is set to grow 31.2% to approximately 640,700 seats.
The winter increase is driven largely by Finnair’s Helsinki-Bangkok-Melbourne service and British Airways' London-Kuala Lumpur-Melbourne route, which together will provide about 123,200 seats during the season.
The expansion of one-stop services via Asian hubs comes as disruption in the Middle East creates demand for alternatives to traditional connections through Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi. The three Gulf hubs have historically captured a significant share of Europe-Australia connecting traffic, but repeated disruption may encourage some passengers to consider other routings.
At the same time, Qantas is preparing to bypass intermediate hubs altogether. The airline plans to launch nonstop Sydney-London Heathrow flights in October 2027 using specially configured, 238-seat A350-1000ULRs. The aircraft will be capable of flying for up to 22 hours, reducing journey times by as much as four hours compared with the fastest one-stop options. Tickets are scheduled to go on sale in February 2027.
Against this backdrop, EgyptAir’s Cairo-Singapore-Sydney service will provide another alternative to the major Gulf hubs, although routing through Cairo will not eliminate exposure to regional geopolitical risk.
The Sydney plan forms part of a broader expansion of EgyptAir’s international network. In May, the airline resumed service to Los Angeles for the first time in more than two decades, followed by the launch of Cairo-Chicago O’Hare flights in June. EgyptAir will also add 4X-weekly Cairo-Birmingham service from Oct. 27 and begin year-round flights to Stockholm Arlanda 4X-weekly on Dec. 18.
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