World`s largest airliner enters commercial service

The Singapore Airlines A380 entered commercial service today (25 October 2007), with its first flight – SQ380 – from Singapore to Sydney, Australia. The brand new A380 super-jumbo departed Singapore Changi Airport at 0800hrs and is expected to arrive at Sydney Airport at 1725hrs (local hour) to a grand welcome ceremony, after a flight of almost seven and a half hours.

The majority of the seats on the two legs of this flight were sold on eBay, the global online marketplace, with all proceeds donated to charities.

On board today`s flight are many of the successful bidders, as well as representatives of the world media. Some interesting facts:

• The youngest customer is a 10 month-old boy from Singapore
• The oldest is a 91 year-old man, also from Singapore, travelling with his family. His son bought the Singapore Airlines Suites ticket for him in the charity auction;
• Mr Julian Hayward bought the first Suite on the flight, paying US$100,380 for him and a friend to travel from Singapore to Sydney;
• Among passengers is Mr Thomas Lee, from California, who was a passenger on the world`s first Boeing 747 commercial flight between New York and London in 1970.
• Also travelling is Ms Isabelle Chu, a travel agent from Perth, who is flying in both directions on the A380. Ms Chu flew in both directions on the first Singapore Airlines A340-500 flights between Singapore and Los Angeles, and
  
  Singapore and New York, non-stop in 2004, with just time for shower between flights. This time, she will enjoy an overnight stopover in Sydney.
• The passengers represent 35 different nationalities, with the largest group being Australians (28%), then Singaporeans (14%), then Britons (11%) and Americans (8%). Those who have come furthest for the first flight are 4
  
  Norwegians.
• The most common first name of passengers is David, with 11.
• The ratio of male to female passengers on board is 7:3.

Tomorrow, SQ380 will fly the return leg of this trip, from Sydney back to Singapore, departing at 1600hrs and arriving at 2215hrs.

The auction raised around S$1.9 million, all of which will be split three ways, between Singapore and Sydney charities, and a global humanitarian organization:

• One third to Singapore`s Community Chest
• One third between the Sydney Children`s Hospital, Randwick, and The Children`s Hospital at Westmead, both in Sydney
• One third to Medecins Sans Frontieres, also known as Doctors Without Borders.

Cheques will be presented to the beneficiary organizations during events in Singapore and Sydney.

Singapore Airlines took delivery of the world`s first A380 on 15 October 2007, at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse.

The A380 will commence scheduled service between Singapore and Sydney on one of the three daily flights in each direction on Sunday, 28 October 2007.

The delivery of subsequent aircraft will allow for the introduction of the A380, also on one of the three daily flights between Singapore and London`s Heathrow Airport from the first quarter of 2008.