Qantas boosts Melbourne-Singapore flights
The second flight will feature a Boeing 787 and add premium economy to traveller’s options.
By David Flynn, August 16 2022
Qantas is ramping up flights between Melbourne and Singapore from March 2023, with a Boeing 787 Dreamliner slotting into the Lion City schedule.
That not only means a quieter and generally more comfortable experience on the eight-hour journey, it also adds premium economy to the mix, given that the Airbus A330 on the current single daily flight is fitted with only business and economy class.
The premium economy option will prove especially welcome on the overnight return leg from Singapore, as passengers stand a better chance of stealing a few hours’ sleep on the red-eye.
Business class on both the A330 and 787 are near-identical, except that the Dreamliner’s suites have a slightly more modern finish and also allow passengers in the paired middle seats to push down a sliding privacy panel and share more of the trip.
Qantas' 787 business class is an upgraded version of the A330 Business Suite.
More importantly than all that, of course, is that the second Qantas Melbourne-Singapore service provides greater flexibility for travellers to match the flight to their own busy schedule.
Beginning March 26 2023, the Qantas website lists the following on its Melbourne-Singapore timetable:
- on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: QF35 (on an Airbus A330) departs Melbourne at 10.20am, arriving into Singapore at 4.30pm
- every day but Sunday: QF37 (the new Boeing 787 flight) departs Melbourne at 2.50pm, arriving into Singapore at 9pm
QF35 is well suited to travellers who want to enjoy dinner in Singapore, while QF37 is all about making a beeline for your hotel room to embrace its big comfortable bed.
Sydney has of course seen two daily flights to Singapore since the A380 returned to the Kangaroo Route on June 19, a date which also marked the reopening of Qantas’ elegant Singapore First Lounge for not only the superjumbo’s first class travellers but also Platinum and Platinum One frequent flyers (and their Oneworld Emerald equivalents).
While you’re in Singapore, don’t miss the city’s newest Michelin-approved eateries, ranging from value-for-money restaurants to hawker centre stalls, and take time out to discover Singapore like a local.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
16 Aug 2022
Total posts 1
Interesting move. I would've thought the very few available 787s QF have could be better utilised elsewhere.
Qantas
19 Apr 2012
Total posts 1427
This suggests that qantas have dates for their final three 787s, now that deliveries from Boeing have resumed.
24 Aug 2011
Total posts 1205
Seems to suggest that the A380 is unlikely to ever return to MEL-SIN. With the reduction of the A380 fleet to 10, the routes no longer using A380s appear to be MEL-SIN, SYD-DFW and SYD-HKG (seasonal).
23 May 2012
Total posts 52
Interesting that QF now seems to start copying weird US departure times, eg (1251 hours on 20 November for QF35 or 1231 hours for QF81):QF035MELSIN1251
-1745or
QF081SYDSIN1231-1750
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
28 Jul 2011
Total posts 60
What does the return time look like for the 787?
05 Mar 2015
Total posts 418
Let me go to the Qantas website and look that up for you..... QF38, 10.30pm - 7.55am.
01 Nov 2017
Total posts 19
Daytime flight from SIN would be nice. I miss the old Emirates flight from SIN-MEL pre COVID.
UA *Gold Lifetime
18 Dec 2015
Total posts 11
Can’t understand why they didn’t time the new 787 to connect to QF1/2 SIN-LHR?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 Feb 2015
Total posts 388
They have I believe on flight to LHR, with QF37 landing in Singapore at 21:00 and QF1 departing at 23:50.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
30 Aug 2017
Total posts 24
Why they always insist on the return being an overnight, I do not know. Refreshing to go with SQ and have the daytime option each way.
05 Mar 2015
Total posts 418
It's an aircraft utilisation thing, otherwise they would have to leave the aircraft sitting on the ground at Changi for 12+ hours.
20 Nov 2015
Total posts 470
Daytime flights to and from Asia are great, for Singapore and Hong Kong trips I always enjoyed the SQ and CX schedules so you could avoid overnights back to Australia. As to "Why they always insist on the return being an overnight", well if you think about it, how would that schedule work for Qantas? Aircraft flying up to Singapore would have to sit idle at Singapore until maybe 10am the next day and probably attract high 'parking fees' too. Doesn't make financial sense.
31 Oct 2018
Total posts 11
With two flights they could’ve scheduled day and night flights each way. SQ offers so much better scheduling (and soft product, and hard product, and lounge experience, and…)
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
29 May 2020
Total posts 35
I guess they could operate a 2230 departure ex MEL and arr SIN 430am. This would also allow connections for first wave Jetstar Asia flights and then return SIN-MEL departing around 8am for the day flight back.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
08 Mar 2022
Total posts 13
Appreciate it'll be down to other 787 flights being operated elsewhere, but would've thought having a Sunday 787 flight would make sense - lots of business travellers doing the Sunday trip up to SE Asia to start the work week.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
05 May 2017
Total posts 18
This is basically what existed before covid, except that QF35 was an A380 and QF37 was an A330, so there is far less capacity on this route even though demand has returned to pre covid levels. Try to book a business class flight to Singapore and check the price, Qantas are doing this on many routes, keeping capacity low whilst demand is high, which leads to higher prices, forcing their loyal customers to fly with other airlines. Out of 6 trips so far in 2022, 4 have been with airlines other than qantas due to price. So Qantas make more profit in the short term but lose their loyal business customers in the long term.
Singapore Airlines - KrisFlyer
28 Jun 2019
Total posts 79
Whether a deliberate or accidental strategy due to fleet decisions, this does appear to be the result, and it's a pity.
I'll scrape by my status retention this year with Qantas, but I've already booked elsewhere beyond the membership renew date for some significant trips next year, so it's safe to say I've officially decided to let go.
Weirdly liberating.
30 Apr 2013
Total posts 11
You could argue that the increase of JQ7/8 (compared to pre-covid) could make up for the lack of A380. If you were simply counting seats on the route across the Group.
05 Jan 2021
Total posts 25
Lets hope there will be award seats in PE and business available on this new flight !
05 Jan 2021
Total posts 25
Be great to think that this means there will be front cabin award seats available later next year on the Oz to Singapore run and vv .
Certainly the cupboard is bare for the next 12 months on this route!
Thai Airways International - Royal Orchid Plus
15 Jan 2013
Total posts 455
It's not too badly timed if one thinks about it.Ex Adelaide one could get say the second to last Morning flight 10:15am gets in 12:05pm TO Melbourne with more than ample time to make the QF37.timing wise not all that much different from the old days of the old QF9(before that switched to Via Dubai and most recently via Perth as part of the London flights). It gets me in with enough time before sightseeing the next day of some sort. I oddly enough prefer that to the Singapore Airlines nonstop out of my home state of South Australia partially due to how Melbourne treats people going in and out of Australia and the timing.The only reason I would go on an earlier daytime flight is to get a dinner meal at say Clarke Quay and do one of those Evening River Cruises.
24 Apr 2014
Total posts 269
I travelled on the QF35 a couple of weeks ago. It was jam packed.
QF37 will be the better flight for connecting to QF1 to London.
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