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End of SIA's business-class flights to New York, LA?
Published on Mar 29, 2012
By Rachel Chang
Three years after a controversial launch, Singapore Airlines is reviewing its options to stem losses on its non-stop, all-business-class flights to New York and Los Angeles.
Company sources say that the national carrier is likely to reintroduce economy-class seats to these flights in a bid to boost revenue.
Reconfiguring its five A345 planes - fuel-guzzlers built for long journeys - to include economy seats will be an expensive undertaking. But rising fuel prices have made the status quo untenable, said sources.
The two routes, the longest all-business-class flights in the world, have been consistently loss-making for the national carrier since their launch in May 2008. Still, they were kept on SIA's roster for their 'ultra-premium' status, even as business-class demand from the US plunged after the 2008 financial crisis. But historically high fuel prices are now forcing SIA management's hand.