Zurich Airport will be the third European airport to handle the Singapore Airlines A380 (after Paris Charles de Gaulle and London Heathrow) and once final approval is granted, a daily Singapore Airlines (SIA) service is planned to begin on March 28 linking Singapore with Zurich.
This would replace the carrier's 12-times weekly schedule that it has been operating between the two cities using B777s. The reduction will therefore bring huge cost savings to Singapore Airlines in terms of operational costs and underlines the importance of the A380 on key trunk routes.
The routing attracts heavy demand and according to IATA BSP data (Airport IS), between October 2008 and 2009, 135,292 passengers flew between Singapore and Zurich. And Singapore Airlines have a comfortable 86% market share. Competition on the routing includes Swiss International Airlines and Emirates (via Dubai).
More Seat Capacity
Total capacity on the B777 is 278 passengers, including eight first class, 42 business class and 228 economy seats.
The A380 will have capacity for 479 seats - made up of 12 suites, 60 business class and 399 economy seats.
The table below illustrates that the A380 will be able to offer 17 additional seats each week (a marginal difference), but will only need to serve seven, rather than 11 weekly flights.
| Aircraft Type | Total seat capacity (weekly) |
| B777 | 3,336 |
| A380 | 3,353 |
Data Source: RDG Malaysian office
High Yields
Data shows that the routing is high yielding - with almost one third of passengers travelling in first and business class. The average one-way fare is $2,137 (€1,516).
The first Airbus A380 touching down in Zurich- Watch the video now!
(click image below)
View the ZRH Enhanced Airport Profile or connect with the ZRH Route Development Team
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