Singapore Airlines First Airbus A330-300 - Handover

[Mushrif A 3]

Thanks KC. Yours truly will be onboard the first commercial flight to SIN later this mth. Too bad it is too short to check out the bells & whistles.

 

Btw, in your second shot of the Y cabin, there seems to be a cover for some storage facility in the wall. What is that?

 

(Now, to prove that time travel is indeed possible, after visiting the C cabin of SQ 333, proceed to board MH's 333, with retro colours...)

[KC Sim 2]

Hi Mushrif,

 

you are very keen-eyed . . . unlike you, I did not notice that at all!!! Perhaps someone more familiar with cabin interiors could shed light on the cover highlighted by Mushrif. I personally don't think it is any facility for a passenger as it does not appear in every row of seats - possibly just an access panel for engineering folks when they service the aircraft. Then again, I could be wrong.

 

Do enjoy your flight on the A330 and let us know how it went. And perhaps with lots more pictures.

 

KC Sim

[Weng Lock 0]

Thanks KC. Yours truly will be onboard the first commercial flight to SIN later this mth. Too bad it is too short to check out the bells & whistles.

 

Btw, in your second shot of the Y cabin, there seems to be a cover for some storage facility in the wall. What is that?

 

(Now, to prove that time travel is indeed possible, after visiting the C cabin of SQ 333, proceed to board MH's 333, with retro colours...)

 

Could that be the power socket for medical equipment - similar to that found in row 56 on the 777-300ER (where there is a little bulging rectangular block)?

[Fitri Shukri 0]

Thanks KC. Yours truly will be onboard the first commercial flight to SIN later this mth. Too bad it is too short to check out the bells & whistles.

 

Btw, in your second shot of the Y cabin, there seems to be a cover for some storage facility in the wall. What is that?

 

(Now, to prove that time travel is indeed possible, after visiting the C cabin of SQ 333, proceed to board MH's 333, with retro colours...)

 

After seeing the excellent photos provided by KC Sim, I feel sorry (and angry too) for MH A330-300. Sandwiched between the D7 A333 and SQ A333, MH A333 have nothing much to shout about.

 

BTW, the legroom in economy looks very roomy.

Edited February 3, 2009 by Fitri Shukri

[S. Huang 0]

Thanks KC for providing the first glimpse into SQ's new A333. Very very nice indeed, and very much in line with the new cabin product that will be progressively introduced to the rest of the fleet. It does look like SQ has once again taken the opportunity to upgrade its product during a slum. The last major cabin upgrade was back in 1998, at the height of the Asian financial crisis when the 747 First Class and Ultimo products were launched...

 

I can't wait to fly on this aircraft!

 

After seeing the excellent photos provided by KC Sim, I feel sorry (and angry too) for MH A330-300. Sandwiched between the D7 A333 and SQ A333, MH A333 have nothing much to shout about.

 

That's not true... MH's A333 are progressively being fitted with the colorful smarties seats that will bring us back to the 70s...hahaa...sorry I just couldn't resist.

[Gavin Andrew David 6]

Love the cockpit shot , everything still clean and sparkling ..... lovely ..

[Hon Kit 3]

Wonderful plane. Very nice.

 

From klia website,

 

Arriving from Singapore SQ3013 and departing as SQ3014 at 3.20 pm today! If there is still tomorrow, im going to shoot ! Anyone wanna join?

Edited February 3, 2009 by Liew Hon Kit

[Mushrif A 3]

After seeing the excellent photos provided by KC Sim, I feel sorry (and angry too) for MH A330-300. Sandwiched between the D7 A333 and SQ A333, MH A333 have nothing much to shout about.

 

D7's 333s are quite modern, and cater to a different clientele.

 

MH's 333 (and TG's dreaded AB6) seem to come from the same "70's" era, given their cabin offerings.

[Benny Zheng 0]

Nice photo insight into the cabin products KC! Do certainly hope they will be working when i'm onboard later in the month.

[KC Sim 2]

Benny : Very certain they will be. You must remember that this is SIA, and not the airline that flew you to London in the newest of their new A380s. And you must also remember that when it does not work on an SIA plane, you will be getting a better response on the spot than a mere shrug of the shoulder.

 

But fingers crossed, you will have a great flight - a short one no doubt but one in a plane that smells super new. From the trips made to Boeing and Airbus, I must really say that the smell of a newly manufactured plane is quite distinctive. Absolutely pristine.

 

Hope you had lots of cabin shots onboard the A380 . . . did it really have those green seats we previously saw in pictures circulated on the internet?

 

KC Sim

 

 

[reyneo 0]

thanks for the amazing pictures!

 

Just wondering... How did you get to see the delivery at TLS? I mean do you work for SQ or Airbus or did you just fly all the way to france on your own and was allowed in?

[KC Sim 2]

I was on assignment for SIA and the pictures were distributed to all the media and were also used in their press releases (which you could see on www.singaporeair.com).

 

A photo permit was required even for this assignment. When one visits Toulouse and books an Airbus factory tour, photography is prohibited. Due to a clash of timings, I was not able to go on the factory tour (where we too had the relevant permit to take pictures) - a pity.

 

It is my understanding that there are nice spots outside the airport (on the Airbus factory side) where there are nice spotting locations - one needs to drive.

 

KC Sim

[Victor A. 2]

KC, very,very nice exterior and interior coverage of SQ brand new A330...

[Yuh Loh 0]

Full of fancy gadgets. Thanks for sharing KC.

[TK 0]

ey seats colour looks nice...makes the cabin brighter..wider.

[KC Sim 2]

Just above the inside of door L1 are two metal plates . . . a blue Manufacturer Plate . . .

 

. . . and a red Owner Plate. As such, this plate shows AWAS as the owner of 9V-STA and AWAS will be leasing six A330-300s to SIA. The remaining 13 aircraft could be leased from other companies but will be similarly outfitted in the cabins.

 

So next time you board a plane, twist your neck 180 degrees to the back and then about 60 degrees upwards . . . and if your systems are still working, you will see these plates. Perhaps easier if you just turn yourself around or look at these when de-planing.

 

KC Sim

[Benny Zheng 0]

Benny : Very certain they will be. You must remember that this is SIA, and not the airline that flew you to London in the newest of their new A380s. And you must also remember that when it does not work on an SIA plane, you will be getting a better response on the spot than a mere shrug of the shoulder.

 

But fingers crossed, you will have a great flight - a short one no doubt but one in a plane that smells super new. From the trips made to Boeing and Airbus, I must really say that the smell of a newly manufactured plane is quite distinctive. Absolutely pristine.

 

Hope you had lots of cabin shots onboard the A380 . . . did it really have those green seats we previously saw in pictures circulated on the internet?

 

KC Sim

 

Yea i really hope so too. I just receive a letter yesterday from them, together with a AUD$200 voucher for the compensation.

 

I still remember during the times of the SQ A343, i flew from DPS to SIN, the remote is reacting to the PTV next to my seat and that seat's remote is reacting to my PTV. Wonder how they connect and tested in the past haha. But again I'm certain the A333 will be probably the best regional product for a long time.

 

Yup the A380 has green seats at the rear economy section of the A380 and the red are at the front of the economy section. The green actually doesn't look too bad in real life. Will take better pictures when i board the day flight back to Sydney. The black back seat cover makes photo taking at night difficult.

 

Just a quicky, is the metal surrounding the plate rusting?

Edited February 4, 2009 by Benny Zheng

[KC Sim 2]

Just a quicky, is the metal surrounding the plate rusting?

 

No, just a protective coating that seems to have been untidily sprayed on.

 

KC Sim

 

[T Azahan 1]

KC bro,

 

My sincere gratitude for sharing 'Sir Tengku Azahan' in Mwings. Hehehe. :clapping: And congratulations for being to able to make it to Toulouse for its delivery. And i hope apart from shooting, you enjoyed your short stay there. It's good to see a Singaporean spotter shooting the first equipment of SQ's new fleet at its birthplace instead of seeing photos from that frog guy.

 

And many thanx too for sharing with us the cabin shots. Judging from the seat design and color, the cabin is definitely user friendly, practical and kept up with the current environment.

 

Hope with better fortune, you shall be able to do similar assignment in the near future. Cheers KC! :drinks:

 

 

[BC Tam 2]

Judging from the seat design and color, the cabin is definitely user friendly, practical and kept up with the current environment.

I beg to differ - on those biege Y seats

Anyone trying to keep clean an Innova interior will agree

[Ryan Soh 3]

So next time you board a plane, twist your neck 180 degrees to the back and then about 60 degrees upwards . . . and if your systems are still working, you will see these plates. Perhaps easier if you just turn yourself around or look at these when de-planing.

Err... Maybe I need Linda Blair on sight to show me those neck contortions. Twist my neck 180deg to the back?! Should I also be spewing green puke and vulgarities at the same time? LOL!!!!!

 

I beg to differ - on those biege Y seats

Anyone trying to keep clean an Innova interior will agree

Don't remind me... My car interior also has beige areas. I thought your Innova was quite well kept inside leh, no? I can imagine the cleaners will be working doubly hard to maintain it. When I flew the 77W signs of damage and stains were already very visible on the seats and the surrounding console. The plane was less than a year old then.

[Benny Zheng 0]

It's good to see a Singaporean spotter shooting the first equipment of SQ's new fleet at its birthplace instead of seeing photos from that frog guy.

 

 

I like the way you describe him Azahan

[KC Sim 2]

I hope that when the time comes for MAS to bring home its first A380, it will also consider inviting local photographers to do the photography instead of engaging an outsider for the job.

 

We can surely bet that some of the first photos will always come from the very famous French Frog Slides people - and I must admit that I have always enjoyed their beautiful shots. But it is good to also bring dedicated local photographers to do the coverage. One thing is: my shots are immediately processed and deposited into a pool which media from all over the world could use as a resource.

 

I hope that when MAS unveils its first A380, it will have an updated livery and I also hope that it names its A380s. I definitely look forward to that.

 

KC Sim

[KC Sim 2]

To commemorate the handover of SIA's first A330, Airbus gave out a little memorabilia.

 

It consists of a polished metal base-plate with an A330 laser-cut from it and bent "skywards" for climb-out after take-off. On the bottom left-hand corner is the inscription: First A330-300 delivery to SINGAPORE AIRLINES on lease from AWAS. Toulouse, January 2009.

 

 

I wish Airbus had given something of a similar nature for the A380 handover. Instead we got a coffee-table book which we could have obtained from a bookshop anyway.

 

KC Sim

[Mushrif A 3]

To commemorate the handover of SIA's first A330, Airbus gave out a little memorabilia.

 

It consists of a polished metal base-plate with an A330 laser-cut from it and bent "skywards" for climb-out after take-off. On the bottom left-hand corner is the inscription: First A330-300 delivery to SINGAPORE AIRLINES on lease from AWAS. Toulouse, January 2009.

 

I wish Airbus had given something of a similar nature for the A380 handover. Instead we got a coffee-table book which we could have obtained from a bookshop anyway.

 

KC Sim

 

What's with the need to be technically and legally correct "on lease from AWAS" on a marketing momento? Some legal requirement? Just dilutes the impact, in my opinion.

 

"Delivery of First A330-300 operated by Singapore Airlines", would have left out the ownership issue.

 

But nice, symbolic momento anyway.

 

Do you think SQ will hand out nice A330 models on the official inaugural to BNE, as per what it did with the 380 on the A380 inaugurals to SYD, LHR etc?