Qantas Pulled an A380 From Melbourne-Los Angeles and Aimed It at Singapore

Qantas has started flying its A380 superjumbo on the Sydney to Singapore route six days a week. The aircraft now operates flights QF81 and QF82, replacing the smaller A330 on most services and joining QF1 and QF2, the Sydney to Singapore to London flagship that already uses the A380. QF81 departs Sydney at 11:40 and reaches Singapore at 17:00, while QF82 leaves Singapore at 20:40 and lands in Sydney at 07:35 the following morning.

The upgrade is substantial for premium travelers. The refurbished A380 carries 485 passengers, including 14 First suites, 70 Business seats, 60 Premium Economy seats and 341 in Economy. The A330 it replaces had roughly 27 or 28 Business seats and no First Class at all. According to 2PAXfly, the change adds 14 First Class seats and more than doubles the route’s Business Class capacity, which should also free up more award seats.

The reason is a shift in demand. Qantas moved the A380 off its Melbourne to Los Angeles route, where it acknowledged softer outbound Economy demand, and redeployed it to Sydney to Singapore, where it sees stronger demand. That makes the swap a reallocation rather than an increase in fleet size, and it leaves Melbourne to Los Angeles with a different aircraft. Qantas has not been shy about shuffling its largest planes to chase profitable routes.

Points redemptions are listed from 29,000 Qantas Points one way in Economy, 61,100 in Premium Economy and 82,100 in Business, plus taxes and charges. First is priced at 123,100 points, though availability depends on Qantas actually releasing a seat. With nearly two flights a day between Sydney and Singapore, the extra capacity should make same-day connections and flexible bookings to Europe and Asia easier for Australian travelers this summer.

Sources: 2PAXfly: Qantas more A380 flights to Singapore, 2PAXfly: Weekly Review, November 1, 2026