World’s Most Awarded Airline Orders US$17B New Airplanes
Relentless Pursuit of Excellence…
Singapore Airlines (SIA) has certainly come a long long way since its split from Malaysia-Singapore Airlines (MSA) and its founding in October 1972. In my post 'My Tribute to the Singapore Girl' I had said that the airline had 'distinguished itself through sheer branding, entrepreneurship, fiercely loyal and cohesive staff, a strong marketing-driven organization that is decentralized to regional centres for effective pricing and fast market response'. Whilst these reasons may sound like case study MBA answers for why companies succeed, they do not reveal the underlying ethos and camaraderie spirit, the esprit de corps that bond the SIA people together. Like in any major Silicon Valley startup that blossomed, these are the true reasons : shared beliefs, flexible functional boundaries, passion in the relentless pursuit of excellence and the courage to change the rules of the game.
Reputation as a Trendsetter…
'We have made a habit of leading the way, and along the way developed a reputation for being an industry trendsetter. Our ever-growing list of industry-leading innovations includes the following firsts'- from SIA's official website.. These include: *First to offer free headsets, a choice of meals and free drinks in Economy Class, in the 1970s *First to introduce satellite-based inflight telephones in 1991 *First to involve a comprehensive panel of world-renowned chefs, the International Culinary Panel, in developing inflight meals in 1998 *First to offer audio and video on demand (AVOD) capabilities on KrisWorld in all classes in October 2001 *First to operate the world’s longest non-stop commercial flight between Singapore and Los Angeles in February 2004 on the A340-500, and then surpassing the record (in terms of distance) later that year with the non-stop service to New York (Newark), in June 2004 *First to fly the A380 from Singapore to Sydney on 25 October 2007
The Most Awarded Airline…
To me, the Singapore Girl icon (helping the yellow stylised SIA bird) is akin to what the prancing horse and the three-pointed star are doing for Ferrari and Mercedes Benz respectively in the highly competitive, styling, marketing and technology driven automotive world. 'Meeting the standards is NOT enough' is what a US Navy SEAL wrote in his book about increasing the odds for mission success, and in their deadly game, it means life or death. The airline's success in being ranked amongst the most respected travel brands around the world is nearly through 'blood , sweat, toil and tears'. Its lists of 'firsts' and the string of 'awards' and accoldaes from surveys have made SIA the world's most awarded airline.
State-of-the Art Boeing 787 And Airbus 350…
The airline has just placed one of the biggest aircraft orders in its history – a staggering US$17B for the state-of-the-art stretched version of the Boeing 787-10X Dreamliners and the Airbus 350-1000.. Once again SIA will be undertaking its fleet renewal to sustain its modern fleet and to meet rising competition from the Middle Eastern carriers for the high-yield business travellers.
Include Fly Singapore Airlines Into Your Bucket List…
I know many many of us include travel to exotic destinations into our bucket list. Perhaps you will like to add 'Fly Singapore Airlines and experience Service That Even Other Airlines Talk About' into your bucket list. Have a great flight…
Related articles :
1. Singapore Airlines places US$17b order for Airbus, Boeing aircraft – Channel News Asia
2. Singapore Airlines orders 30 B787-10Xs – Business Traveller
3. VIDEO: Airbus A350 takes to the skies in maiden test flight – Business Traveller
