2026 is a make-or-break year for Singapore Airlines, with the carrier set to launch its long-delayed next-generation Business Class seat by the end of Q2, on a retrofitted Airbus A350-900LH.
This wasn’t the original plan, mind you, but repeated delays to the Boeing 777X programme (seven years overdue and counting!) left it with little choice but to accelerate the retrofits of existing aircraft.
SIA’s current long-haul Business Class seat dates back to 2013, and to put things into perspective, United launched its Polaris Business Class in 2016, yet plans to unveil its successor in early 2026— an entire product cycle completed within the lifespan of SIA’s existing seat!
While we don’t know much about the seat (dubbed 2026J) at this point in time, one question we can make an educated guess about is: which route will get the new seats first?
Only Singapore Airlines knows for sure, but there’s good reason to believe that London may be the first, if not one of the first to get this. And there’s something interesting going on with award space too…
Where has Singapore Airlines historically launched new cabin products?
Before we talk about the likely candidates for the 2026J seat, let’s do a quick recap of three decades’ worth of product launches.
| Cabin Product | Debut Route | Debut Date |
 1998 Sky Suites & UltimoB747-400 |
🌏Multiple Destinations* | 13 Sep 1998 |
 2002 SpacebedB747-400 |
🇬🇧 London |
31 May 2002 |
 2006 First and Business ClassB777-300ER |
🇫🇷 Paris (SQ334/333) |
5 Dec 2006 |
 2007 SuitesA380-800 |
🇦🇺 Sydney (SQ380/381) |
25 Oct 2007 |
 2009 Regional Business ClassA330-300 |
🇦🇺 Brisbane (SQ255/236) |
30 Mar 2009 |
 2013 First and Business ClassB777-300ER |
🇬🇧 London (SQ318/319) |
27 Sep 2013 |
 2015 Premium EconomyB777-300ER |
🇦🇺 Sydney (SQ221/222) |
9 Aug 2015 |
 2017 Suites and Business ClassA380-800 |
🇦🇺 Sydney (SQ221/232) |
18 Dec 2017 |
 2018 Regional Business ClassB787-10 |
🇹🇭 Bangkok (SQ970/973) |
3 Apr 2018 |
 2021 Regional Business ClassB737-8 MAX |
🇹🇭 Phuket (SQ728/738) |
23 Nov 2021 |
| *✈️ A very special inaugural flight |
|
Singapore Airlines had a special plan to mark the launch of its new B747-400 cabin products in 1998. Instead of flying to one destination, the airline did a round-the-world flight from Singapore – London- Frankfurt – New York- Osaka- Singapore! This aircraft entered into regular service on the Singapore-Frankfurt-New York JFK route later that month. |
If we ignore the regional Business Class products, then London and Sydney would be the two most common routes for Singapore Airlines to launch new seats.
Of the two, Sydney would allow for better product consistency, as the rotation can be handled by a single aircraft (barring any mechanical snafus), enabling SIA to offer the product on a daily basis. They could probably even tag on a regional flight between turnarounds, providing additional opportunities for crew familiarisation.
But the distance to London is much further, and the following day’s flight from Singapore would depart before the aircraft from the previous day had a chance to return. Therefore, if London were to be the launch route, then daily service would not be possible until more retrofitted aircraft arrive.
It’s not outside the realm of possibility though, because this is precisely what happened back in September 2013. SIA launched its 2013 First and Business Class seats on the B777-300ER to London as a 3x weekly service, before ramping up to daily service when more aircraft became available (incidentally, the new aircraft also served Tokyo Narita occasionally during this period).
The case for London Heathrow
What further builds the case for London seeing the 2026J first is an interesting aircraft swap scheduled for July 2026.
For context, Singapore Airlines currently operates 4x daily services to London, using a mix of A380-800 and B777-300ER aircraft. However, from 1 July 2026, SQ 306/305 will be downgauged from a B777-300ER to an A350-900LH.
| ❓Where is the B777-300ER going? |
|
The B777-300ER pulled from the London route will be redeployed to Amsterdam, restoring First Class service to Schiphol after a long absence. |
This is unusual, to say the least. With landing slots at Heathrow so coveted (a pair of prime slots sold for US$75 million in 2016), airlines try to operate their highest-capacity aircraft there whenever possible. So why would SIA swap a B777-300ER for a smaller A350-900LH, right during the peak of the summer season?
A simple explanation for the switcheroo is that SIA plans to deploy its new Business Class to London. Mind you, the retrofitted A350-900LH will have 258 seats, so the difference in capacity is marginal (though obviously the loss of First Class and a smaller Business Class cabin will negatively impact revenue per seat).
| ✈️ Boeing 777-300ER vs Airbus A350-900LH (refit) | ||
| B777-300ER | A350-900LH | |
| First Class | 4 | – |
| Business Class | 48 | 42 |
| Premium Economy Class | 28 | 24 |
| Economy Class | 184 | 192 |
| Total | 264 | 258 |
It’s hard to see any other explanation, really. SIA hasn’t deployed the A350-900LH to London Heathrow since the COVID era, and I don’t believe that Amsterdam’s need for a B777-300ER outweighs London’s.
The curious case of award space
There’s one thing that gives me pause, however.
When I first heard about the swap, I immediately went to waitlist myself on the SQ306/305 pairing, more in hope than expectation. At the time of waitlisting, Business Saver awards were completely unavailable, and Advantage awards were all on waitlist. The only awards available for immediate confirmation were Access, at 177,000 miles.
But yesterday morning, I received a notification that my waitlisted flight had cleared! That’s not all— when I went to check the website, I saw that Business Saver awards on SQ306/305 had suddenly opened up in July 2026, even for regular KrisFlyer members!
If you think it’s unusual to swap a B777-300ER for an A350-900LH, it’s even more unusual for SIA to release Saver space for its latest cabin products.
In fact, you might recall that when SIA first unveiled its 2006 First and Business Class seats, it blocked Saver redemptions completely, and only allowed Unrestricted redemptions (the forerunner of today’s Advantage awards). It wasn’t until March 2012 that members could make Saver redemptions for these cabin products. Likewise, Suites Saver awards were not available for the first five years after the product debuted.
To be fair, however, SIA did not block Saver awards in 2013 with the new First and Business Class seats, nor in 2017 with the new Suites and Business Class on the A380— though it did carry out KrisFlyer devaluations around the period those launches happened.
So I really don’t know. It feels a little too good to be true, that Saver space should be so freely available on SIA’s latest and greatest. Then again, Saver space on SQ306/305 seems to disappear from September 2026, so perhaps the new seats won’t appear on London so soon— but then why not move back the B777-300ER to A350-900LH swap too?
If we consider Sydney, the other possibility, then SQ241/242 where the A350-900LH is currently rostered becomes the prime suspect. From what I can see, Business Saver awards have pretty much disappeared too, so that might be worth keeping an eye on.
What to expect from SIA’s new Business Class seat?
SIA has remained tight-lipped on what the new Business Class seat will look like, but based on the teasers provided we can confirm at least a few things.
- The seat bears a striking resemblance to the Safran Unity (also in use by Japan Airlines on its A350-1000)
- The seat will have a privacy door
- Seats will be staggered in an all-forward-facing configuration, with some passengers closer to the aisle and others closer to the window
- Passengers will sleep parallel to the aisle, instead of at an angle as with the existing 2013 Business Class seat
- Seats will recline to full-flat beds, with no flipping necessary
We should also expect modern-day conveniences like 4K screens, wireless charging, USB-C ports, and Bluetooth audio connectivity.
Singapore Airlines all-new Business Class: What the teasers tell us
SIA plans to refit all 34 A350-900LH aircraft and 7 A350-900ULR aircraft by the end of 2030. Assuming the first plane arrives in June 2026, this works out to a refit every ~6 weeks.
Conclusion
Singapore Airlines’ new Business Class seats are coming in 2026, and while a suspicious aircraft swap on the London Heathrow route suggests that SQ306/305 might be the first (or among the first) routes to get it, I can’t explain why Business Saver space would suddenly open up around the same time.
Either way, we should get some clarity towards the end of Q1 2026, when SIA holds its launch event. The airline has also teased an all-new travel experience featuring faster inflight internet (Starlink?), enhanced food and beverage offering (caviar?), new amenity kits and updated soft furnishings and serviceware, so there’s plenty to look forward to next year.
Which route do you think will get the new Business Class first?
great investigative work Aaron, well done! As a frequent flyer of a lesser SQ route, I think that if the LHR/AMS rotation is anything to go by, said lesser routes might end up having 777ER with First but “old” Business seats, as the premier routes would then get the 900ULH with the “new” seats.
Thanks! H/t to MM for picking up on the aircraft swap earlier this year. I’ve been trying my luck with speculative redemptions and was very surprised to see the waitlist clear and saver space open up, though I think if anything that counts against lhr being the launch route…unless sq is just bring generous.
SQ has lost its wow factor – consistency is where it excels, but most frequent flyers I know, are moving to one world
from Changi: Cathay and Qatar in their respective flying directions offer competitive products
If SQ launch the new BC to Sydney, when do you think it eill be? JULY?
it’s a complete stab in the dark right now. but the new aircraft is meant to go into service by q2, so if sydney is the launch route, then july would be safe.