10/15/2007: Airbus Delivers First A380 to Singapore Airlines

On October 15, 2007, Airbus delivered the first A380 to launch customer Singapore Airlines (SQ). Registered 9V-SKA, the aircraft would carry the type's first commercial passengers ten days later, between Singapore and Sydney.

The handover took place at Airbus' delivery center in Toulouse, France. The manufacturer's announcement, preserved by Airframer, records a cabin with 471 seats in three classes, including the airline's new Suites product. Four Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines powered the aircraft.

SQ's initial deal covered ten firm aircraft and 15 options. Its 2001–02 annual report says the purchase agreement was signed in July 2001 and valued the package at US$8.6bn. The first aircraft was then expected to enter service in early 2006; the eventual handover came in October 2007.

The relationship predated the A380: Singapore Airlines placed its first Airbus order in 1979.

In Service

Flight SQ380 departed Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) for Sydney Airport (SYD) on October 25, 2007. Seats on both sectors of the inaugural trip were auctioned on eBay. The airline's annual report records proceeds for four charities: Singapore's Community Chest, Sydney Children's Hospital Randwick, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, and Médecins Sans Frontières.

Airbus' delivery announcement scheduled daily A380 service on the route from October 28. The double-decker gave SQ room to add seats on busy routes without adding flights. Airways contributor Chris Sloan was aboard SQ380 and later recounted the inaugural flight and its original cabins.

Later Service

9V-SKA's flying career lasted about a decade. Aviationtag, which made tags from its fuselage, records that the aircraft was dismantled in January 2020.

Singapore Airlines continued investing in the type. In December 2017, Airbus delivered the first of five new A380s with redesigned cabins, featuring six Suites, 78 business class seats, 44 premium economy seats and 343 economy seats.

After the pandemic disrupted international travel, SQ announced that A380 operations to London would resume on November 18, 2021. In its results for the year ended March 31, 2026, the airline listed 12 A380s in a passenger operating fleet of 148 aircraft.

The Airchive's photographs of the October 2007 inaugural document the aircraft and cabin that began that service history.