Singapore Airlines is the flag carrier airline of its home country. It operates its hub out of the Singapore Changi Airport, and the company has a very strong presence in the Southeast Asia region. It also figures prominently in East Asia, South Asia, and the "Kangaroo Route" markets that are found between Australia and the UK. These aren’t the only regions that Singapore Airlines flies to, however. There are also flights that have the United States as their ultimate destination, for example. Originally, you could fly from Singapore straight to either Newark or Los Angeles. These once direct flights are now set to have layovers, however. Also worth noting is the wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines – SilkAir. It allows the company to better manage regional flights with smaller capacity requirements.

History

In 1947, the Ocean Steamship Company of Liverpool teamed up with the Straits Steamship Company of Singapore and Imperial Airways to incorporate Malayan Airways Limited. At the time, Singapore was a British territory. The newly incorporated airline’s first flight was a chartered flight that traveled from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur. Soon thereafter, regular weekly scheduled flights from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, and Penang were offered. Expansion of the operations continued in the following decades, thanks in part to the support of other British Commonwealth airlines. In 1963, the Federation of Malaysia was formed, and this federation included Singapore. That same year, the name of Malayan Airways was changed to Malaysian Airways. Singapore didn’t remain as part of the Federation of Malaysia for very long, and in 1966, the name of Malaysian Airways was changed to Malaysia-Singapore Airlines. This isn’t where the name changes ended, however. In 1972, Malaysia-Singapore Airlines formed two different entities – Singapore Airlines and Malaysian Airlines. Singapore Airlines quickly expanded thereafter, and the rest is basically history. Today, the company is a major player within the airline industry, ranking high in such things as international passengers carried and market capitalization. In addition to its main operations, it runs the aforementioned subsidiary of SilkAir, as well as another subsidiary that is known as Singapore Airlines Cargo. Also interesting to note are the stakes that Singapore Airlines has in other airlines. It has a 49 percent shareholding in Virgin Atlantic and another stake in the low-cost Singapore airline of Tiger Airways.

Routes & Destinations

Singapore Airlines offers passenger services to more than 60 cities in over 30 countries. Within Asia alone, you can connect via its subsidiary SilkAir to over 30 cities, including Kuala Lumpur, Phuket, Ho Chi Minh City, and Manila. On the larger front, most of the international destinations for Singapore Airlines are found in a band-like pattern along the already mentioned Kangaroo Route – Australia to the UK. Some destinations lie outside of this general region, however, with examples including Los Angeles, Houston, Newark, Rio de Janeiro, and Cape Town. If you can’t find a Singapore Airlines flight that suits your preference, you can check to see what SilkAir, Tiger Airways, or one of the other Singapore-based airlines have to offer.

Singapore Map

Other Singapore Airlines

SilkAir is an airline that is definitely worth keeping in mind if you are searching for flights that serve Singapore and other regional countries. This subsidiary of Singapore Airlines offers passenger services from Singapore to more than 40 cities in Southeast Asia, South Asia, China, and Australia. There’s also Tiger Airways, which Singapore Airlines has a stake in. This low-cost airline is based in Singapore and offers service to destinations in Southeast Asia, China, India, and Australia. Other passenger airlines that service Singapore and the general region include, but aren’t limited to, Scoot, Valuair, and Jetstar. As is true of Tiger Airways, these are low-cost airlines. Scoot and Valuair are based in Singapore, while Jetstar is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia.