SIA might defer A380 delivery

Singapore - Singapore Airlines (SIA) said it would receive the planned four Airbus A380 superjumbos this year, but does not rule out deferring future deliveries in light of falling passenger and cargo volumes.

SIA told AFP it was scheduled to take the delivery of four A380s this year, and have no immediate plans to defer any aircraft deliveries. "However, we don't discount the possibility of deferring future deliveries as we consider the options for our fleet going forward," SIA said.

SIA said load figures for the aircraft remain encouraging, but reported February cargo figures slipping 16.9%, while filling 56.7% of available freight space, down 5.5 percentage points from last year.

Should SIA decide to defer the A380 deliveries, it would follow the likes of Emirates, Air France KLM group and Lufthansa.

Emirates, the A380's biggest customer said it will switch to Boeing's smaller 777 after a drop in traffic between Dubai and New York had made the superjumbo unsuitable. It may delay some of the 54 it is supposed to receive.

Meanwhile, Air France KLM Group has postponed two deliveries while Lufthansa said it would take its first two A380s in 2010 instead of this year.