SIA Replaces Flights To Nowhere With A380 Restaurant, Operating On 2 Days Only
After more than half a year of Covid-19-related travel restrictions, Singaporeans are unsurprisingly sick of being stuck in the country, and miss travelling.
Our national carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) has been badly affected as passenger demand has plunged, leaving them to let go of staff.
But after an initial proposal to launch “fights to nowhere” was decried as environmentally unfriendly, the airline had to look for other ways to earn some income from our yearning for travel.
Enter Restaurant A380, where you can enjoy fine dining in an SIA plane with cabin crew as your waitresses.
A380 is intricately linked to SIA’s history
The Airbus A380, the world’s largest passenger airliner, is intricately linked to SIA’s history.
SIA is proudly known for being the 1st airline to take delivery of the superjumbo, but some Singaporeans may have never set foot inside one before.
Even if you can’t fly on it yet, now’s your chance to enter the double-decker plane for a tour and a meal and experience what it’s like for a passenger.
Restaurant A380
To that end, SIA’s Restaurant A380 offers that experience for 2 days only — 24 & 25 Oct.
Diners will be able to choose which cabin class to eat in — we presume a meal in First or Business Class will cost more than Economy Class.
Whichever class you choose to eat in, we’re sure you’ll get the best of SIA’s renowned service.
As for the food, the airline is offering a choice of the airline’s tailor-made international menu, or Peranakan offerings from Singaporean chef Shermay Lee.
The meal also comes with 2 free alcoholic drinks and a free flow of other drinks.
Other perks of the restaurant
Besides the novel experience of going for a meal in a plane, Restaurant A380 offers perks that normal restaurants can’t give.
One of them is watching a movie while you eat.
Lest we forget, onboard entertainment is one of the best things about flying with SIA.
If you’ve missed it, 1,000 entertainment options like movies, TV shows and music are available on demand for diners if your dining companion gets a little boring.
Before you dine, you may also sign up for a tour of the plane, including a behind-the-scenes peek at private access areas even passengers don’t get to explore.
The airline will also be showing off its cabin crew uniforms over the years in a heritage showcase.
Thus, if you show up for your meal wearing traditional heritage togs like a sarong kebaya or batik shirt, you will get a special gift.
Lastly, even if you don’t wear traditional heritage clothing, all Restaurant A380 diners will get a goodie bag with limited-edition keepsakes and exclusive discounts on SIA’s e-commerce portal Kris Shop.
Group size limited to 5
If you’re worried about catching Covid-19, SIA will take precautions, reported The Straits Times.
That’s why group sizes can’t be more than 5, going by the prevailing safe distancing guidelines.
Temperature checks will be conducted, and all diners and crew must wear face masks at all times, except when eating or drinking.
The plane will also be rigorously sanitised.
Besides Restaurant A380, SIA is also offering home delivery of their cuisine, and behind-the-scenes training centre tours. Watch SIA’s promotional video on their new offerings here:
Dining slots may go fast
While the pricing hasn’t been revealed yet for Restaurant A380, we think the slots will be fully booked soon, especially since safe distancing requirements mean that not all 471 seats can be taken up.
Slots will be available on Kris Shop from 12 Oct, so do mark your calendars if you want to book this package.
If the restaurant is successful, we hope SIA can roll it out on more dates as it kills 2 birds with 1 stone.
Since the flights to nowhere idea has been scrapped for the foreseeable future, Restaurant A380 gives the airline much-needed income and partly satiates the public’s desire for high-class travel by combining it with a favourite Singaporean pastime — eating.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at hello@mustsharenews.com.
Featured images adapted from Milelion and Facebook.
