Confirmed: Singapore Airlines’ new First and Business Class seats delayed to 2027

In November 2024, Singapore Airlines announced a S$1.1 billion retrofit programme for 41 of its Airbus A350-900 aircraft, which would introduce brand-new seats across all four cabins, including its highly anticipated next-generation First and Business Class.

These products have been a long time coming. If not for the endless dysfunction at Boeing — and COVID, to be fair — we would have seen them debut in 2021, on the first of SIA’s 31 Boeing 777-9s. But with these aircraft now delayed until at least 2027, and likely even beyond, given SIA’s position in the delivery queue, the airline decided that waiting was no longer an option.

During the announcement, SIA provided the following timeline:

However, we’re now well into Q2 2026. If the retrofitted aircraft were to enter service this quarter, an announcement would almost certainly have been made by this point.

So I reached out to SIA for an update, and unfortunately, it’s bad news: we won’t be seeing the first retrofitted Airbus A350-900 this year after all.

Singapore Airlines new cabin products delayed until Q1 2027

Singapore Airlines has confirmed via a spokesperson that its first retrofitted Airbus A350-900LH aircraft is only expected to enter service in Q1 2027.

Actually, this delay was already hinted at in yesterday’s Starlink announcement, where SIA pegged Q1 2027 as the entry-into-service date for the first Starlink-equipped aircraft. 

If SIA plans to perform the Starlink installations while aircraft are being retrofitted with the new cabin products — and given the projected completion date of end-2029, that certainly appears to be the case — then it follows that the first retrofitted aircraft will only be ready in early 2027 at the earliest.

SIA will unveil its enhanced travel experience later in 2026, which will feature an elevated dining experience, the next-generation KrisWorld inflight entertainment system, and new inflight soft furnishings and amenities. I previously wrote about some of the things we might expect to see, such as caviar service in Business Class, and perhaps a branded tie-up for bedding.

Singapore Airlines teases “all-new travel experience” for 2026

For context, SIA’s original plan was to refit a total of 41 A350-900 aircraft (34 A350-900LHs and 7 A350-900ULRs) by 2030, so naturally that timeline will be pushed back too.

What’s behind the delays?

Singapore Airlines attributes the delay to industry-wide supply chain constraints, and certification issues with one of the new seats (the new First Class suite, perhaps?), and it’s no secret that these issues have blighted the aviation industry for some time now.

The key issue is that modern premium cabins are no longer just seats. They’re highly complex “mini smart rooms” with doors, moving parts, screens, power systems, integrated electronics and custom finishes.

That’s not to mention the globalised parts dependency, as chips, motors, textiles and electronics may be sourced from different countries (there’s a fascinating statistic in this Reuters piece which quotes 3,000 parts from 50 suppliers in 15 countries). All it takes is a trade dispute here — or, in our current bizarro universe, a social media post there — to gum up the works, and if even one supplier falls behind, the entire process can be delayed.

Compounding the issue is the fact that seat makers lost a lot of production capacity during COVID, and have been slow to recover it. In 2025, French seat manufacturer Safran delivered 2,600 Business Class seats, a mere 150 increase from the year before, noting that “the seat certification process, particularly for Business Class, has become significantly more complex and demanding in recent years due to innovation and the tightening of regulatory requirements.”

To put those numbers into perspective, Japan Airlines installs a total of 54 Safran Unity seats on its Airbus A350-1000. That means Safran’s entire annual output would equip fewer than 50 aircraft!

Moreover, regulatory bodies like the FAA and EASA have implemented new aircraft seat regulations, and have begun taking a firmer stance towards interpreting some existing regulations as well. There is also a shortage of engineers required to perform the certification work- possibly as few as 200 worldwide, if you believe this report.

The end result is that airframe delivery can run ahead of cabin suppliers (though not in the case of the Boeing 777-9!). Lufthansa, for example, had to park two brand-new A350-900s at Teruel Airport because their seats weren’t ready, while Iberia took delivery of A350-900s with the front Business Class section temporarily filled with placeholder Economy seats.

SIA is particularly susceptible to these delays because it doesn’t order off-the-shelf seats for its long-haul Business Class (though it does use the Stelia Aerospace Symphony for its regional product). Instead, it opts for highly customised designs, which make its seats distinctive — but also increases the risk of delays compared to airlines using “catalogue” seats like the popular Collins Aerospace Super Diamond. 

Still, it’s a hard pill to swallow. The mainstay Business Class seat of SIA’s long-haul fleet, found on its A350-900LHs and B777-300ERs, dates back to 2013, and while it’s a perfectly decent product, it’s fallen way behind the competition. 

The seat is a throwback to the pre-suite era, lacking privacy doors, mood lighting, or the adjustable social configurations offered by rivals. Its tech is a few generations out of date, with no Bluetooth audio connectivity, wireless charging, or USB-C ports. And while its 18-inch HD screen may have been considered impressive for its day, it looks decidedly archaic compared to the 4K screens that rivals are introducing— even in Economy Class.

Perhaps the biggest giveaway is the 9-pin iPod connector. This feature was big news when it debuted in 2008, but today just spotlights the seat’s vintage!

You will find a slightly better seat on the A380, which offers a much better social experience thanks to the positioning of the middle seats and the possibility of converting selected seats into a double bed. 

However, with just 12 such aircraft in the fleet, it’s far less common than the 2013 Business Class seat (found on 56 A350-900LHs and Boeing 777-300ERs). Moreover, as this seat dates back to 2017, it also doesn’t have doors or any of the modern technological flourishes you’d expect from a Business Class seat today.

The additional delay means that 14 years will have passed between SIA’s long-haul Business Class seat generations, the longest-ever in memory (it’s debatable whether you want to count the 2017 Business Class seat, given that they only exist on a handful of aircraft, but even if you do, it’s still a 10-year gap).

Singapore Airlines Long-Haul Business Class Seats
Cabin Product	Debut Route	Debut Date
2002 Spacebed B747-400	🇬🇧 London	31 May 2002
2006 Business Class B777-300ER	🇫🇷 Paris (SQ334/333)	5 Dec 2006
2013 Business Class B777-300ER	🇬🇧 London (SQ318/319)	27 Sep 2013
2017 Business Class A380-800	🇦🇺 Sydney (SQ221/232)	18 Dec 2017

It’s gotten to the point where competitors have introduced and replaced their Business Class seats within the lifespan of SIA’s current Business Class seat.

Qatar Airways introduced its revolutionary Qsuites in 2017, and will be launching its replacement Qsuite 2.0 later in 2026 on the A350-1000. 

United Airlines launched Polaris in 2016, and has already started flying its next-generation Polaris Suites — on the San Francisco to Singapore route no less!

What can we expect from the new First and Business Class?

First Class

SIA has been very enthusiastic about its new First Class, with CEO Goh Choon Phong describing it as a “quantum leap” from today’s seats, and something that “will again set industry standards” when launched.

Its teaser for the new First Class reveals very little beyond three windows and French doors, but a leaked patent filing has some very interesting insights. 

• Six First Class suites, with four window seats and two centre seats
• Two centre seats can be combined into a double suite, with a privacy partition that fully retracts sideways (not downwards)
• Each suite has a separate seat and bed, though the seat must be stowed to make way for the bed (similar to the first generation Suites)
• Each suite will have an ottoman for couple dining, with a secondary seatbelt
• Suites will be fully enclosed, with curved walls to create additional space in the compartments

It’s important to remember that the patent filing relates to the proposed layout for the Boeing 777-9, and not the four-seat First Class cabin on the Airbus A350-900ULR. However, the two will likely have very similar DNA, so the rest of the features should be largely identical.

Business Class

SIA’s teaser for the new Business Class shows substantially more of the seat, from which we can confirm 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 a 1-2-1, 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

As with First Class, passengers should expect features like 4K screens, wireless charging, USB-C ports, and Bluetooth audio connectivity.

Singapore Airlines all-new Business Class: What the teasers tell us

Conclusion

Singapore Airlines’ latest cabin products will not be making a debut this year, with supply chain delays and certification issues pushing their introduction into 2027.

It’s a setback for the airline, that’s for sure. Many of its key competitors already offer modern Business Class suites, making SIA’s flagship Business Class look dated by comparison. And given that its “next generation” seat was designed in the mid-2010s for an early-2020s rollout, there are legitimate concerns about whether it will still feel cutting-edge by the time it finally enters service. 

I’m really hoping that SIA will defy the odds and unveil some truly spectacular cabin products, but whatever they are, we’ll need to wait a little longer to see them.