Sep 3, 2009, 11:10 GMT
Singapore - Singapore Airlines (SIA), which had been hit hard by the global recession, on Thursday said it had agreed with Airbus to delay the delivery of eight A380 superjumbos by six to 12 months.
SIA currently operates nine A380 jetliners with two more due for delivery in this financial year.
'The revised schedule will see the 12th aircraft delivered in October 2010 rather than April 2010, while the 19th aircraft will be delivered in January 2012 rather than January 2011,' the airline said in a statement.
SIA flies the A380 to five destinations - Sydney, London, Tokyo, Paris and Hong Kong - and earlier said it would add a service to Melbourne at the end of September.
'SIA is satisfied with the operational and commercial performance of its A380s, which have proved to be popular with customers,' the company said.
In July, Singapore's national carrier had posted its first quarterly loss since the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS.
Net loss in the quarter ended June reached 307.1 million Singapore dollars (212.7 million US dollars), compared with a profit of 358.6 million Singapore dollars a year ago.
SIA attributed the loss to adverse business conditions, adding that it expected to make a full-year loss should these conditions continue.
The airline reduced its capacity and cut the salaries and working hours of its staff because of slumping demand in air traffic.
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