Singapore Airlines will not return to Dubai until 1st June 2026 at the earliest, with an unsurprising downgauge to Boeing 777-300ERs for the summer season.
Singapore Airlines has pushed back the restart of its suspended Dubai flights once again, this time to 1st June 2026 at the earliest, and in the most significant change yet, has dropped the Airbus A380 from the route entirely for the summer season.
The airline will instead deploy a Boeing 777-300ER on flights SQ494 and SQ495 when services eventually resume, shelving the year-round A380 commitment we reported on in February.
It’s not a surprise. When SIA shifted its Dubai A380 capacity across to Melbourne last month, we flagged that the airline was capping First Class seat sales on the Dubai route to just four bookings per flight from the proposed restart dates, strongly suggesting a 777-300ER was the real plan, even though an A380 remained listed in the schedule.
That’s now been confirmed.
The Dubai suspension
The Dubai route has been suspended since the escalation of the Iran conflict disrupted operations in the Middle East. The restart date has been pushed back progressively:
- 28th February 2026 – Initial route suspension
- 29th March 2026 – Original planned Airbus A380 launch date
- 30th April 2026 – Extended suspension announced in March
- 1st June 2026 – Latest confirmed restart date, Boeing 777-300ER
(Photo: Shutterstock)
Each delay has come with the same statement from SIA, citing the ongoing geopolitical situation in the region. Affected customers continue to be re-accommodated on alternative flights or offered full refunds.
What happened to the A380?
When we first reported in January that Singapore Airlines would deploy its Airbus A380 to Dubai, it was a significant move – a 78% seat capacity boost designed to work around the carrier’s inability to secure a second daily slot at the popular Middle East hub.
By February, SIA had doubled down, extending the A380 filing through the entire northern winter 2026/27 season to March 2027.
That commitment has unfortunately unravelled before the first superjumbo service on the route even operated.
(Photo: Shutterstock)
The summer season A380 deployment never got off the ground due to the route suspension, and the airline has formally reverted to the Boeing 777-300ER for the remainder of the current schedule season, even when flights do get going again.
SIA does still list Airbus A380 service to Dubai from the start of the northern winter 2026/27 season, from 25th October 2026, with First Class inventory back at the normal six seats per flight, which is consistent with a genuine A380 filing rather than a placeholder.
Whether that actually happens, given the fluid situation in the Middle East, remains to be seen.
The schedule
Here’s what SIA currently has filed as its revised schedule for the Dubai route.
Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER
Singapore ⇄ Dubai
1 Jun 2026 – 24 Oct 2026
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
| SQ494 777-300ER |
|||||||||
| SIN 14:40 |
DXB 18:00 |
||||||||
| Duration: 07:20 | |||||||||
| SQ495 777-300ER |
|||||||||
| DXB 19:45 |
SIN 07:30* |
||||||||
| Duration: 07:45 | |||||||||
* Next day
Singapore Airlines Airbus A380
Singapore ⇄ Dubai
25 Oct 2026 – 27 Mar 2027
| Days | |||||||||
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S | |||
| SQ494 A380 |
|||||||||
| SIN 14:30 |
DXB 18:10 |
||||||||
| Duration: 07:40 | |||||||||
| SQ495 A380 |
|||||||||
| DXB 19:50 |
SIN 07:15* |
||||||||
| Duration: 07:25 | |||||||||
* Next day
Both schedules remain subject to change, based on the geopolitical situation.
What it means for your booking
If you’re booked in Suites on this route from June to late October, a downgauge to the 777-300ER means you’ll get the carrier’s 2013 First Class cabin – four spacious seats in a 1-2-1 layout.
It’s a fine product, but it’s not the A380 Suites experience that many would have been anticipating.
For bookings from late October 2026 onwards the Airbus A380 should be back, meaning Suites will finally feature on the route as originally planned.
KrisFlyer awards
Here are the latest one-way KrisFlyer award rates you’ll pay for the Singapore – Dubai route, on these Boeing 777-300ER and Airbus A380 flights.
| KrisFlyer Redemption Rates One-Way Singapore ⇄ Dubai |
||||
| Airline / Cabin | Saver | Advantage | Access | |
 |
Economy Class |
32,000 |
66,500 |
95,500 |
|
Premium Economy |
51,500 |
n/a |
74,000 to 91,000 |
|
Business Class |
68,000 |
122,000 |
157,500 to 251,500 |
|
Suites Class |
95,000 |
171,000 |
317,500 |
Taxes and fees apply in addition to miles and typically total around S$67 from Singapore to Dubai and S$47 in the return direction.
These Zone 10 redemptions took a heavy hit in the 2025 KrisFlyer devaluation, with increases of 10-20%.
Keep an eye on the monthly Spontaneous Escapes deals if you’re looking for better value, though Dubai clearly won’t appear on that offer for a little while yet.
Latest SIA A380 routes
Singapore Airlines will continue to operate Airbus A380 flights on up to eight routes this summer, four permanent ones and four that see part-season stints.
You can take a look at the carrier’s latest superjumbo network and schedules in our recently-updated article.
What about Riyadh?
Singapore Airlines’ next long-haul route launch is a return to Riyadh, the largest and capital city of Saudi Arabia, from 2nd June 2026.
(Photo: Shutterstock)
Four times weekly Airbus A350 Medium Haul flights are planned as SQ498/499, however with the ongoing situation it appears as though SIA is hedging its bets on this one.
The carrier is restricting booking to only the most expensive ‘Z’ and ‘Y’ Flexi fare classes in Business Class and Economy Class respectively through to the end of August 2026.
That’s a strong suggestion that the launch may be postponed until September, though no formal announcement has been made at the time of writing.
SIA’s Dubai route has been in flux since the start of the year. What began as an exciting A380 deployment, solving a long-standing slot problem with a 78% capacity boost, has been overtaken by events in the Middle East, and the superjumbo has found a more productive home on Melbourne services in the meantime.
The 1st June restart with a Boeing 777-300ER is the airline’s latest plan, but given how frequently this date is moving, it can’t be treated as certain.
The Airbus A380 remains pencilled in from 25th October for the winter season, with all six Suites on sale, though that too is presumably contingent on the situation stabilising.
Any prolonged drop in demand might even see an unexpected alternative A380 route for the coming winter season, just like Melbourne has stepped in for the summer.
We’ll continue to provide updates as the situation develops.
(Cover Photo: Dubai Airports)
