Flight Report : SQ 216 Perth - Singapore

After a dreadful inbound flight on Singapore Airlines' oldest and most outdated aircraft, I looked forward to a more refreshing trip home. When I booked this itinerary, the outbound from Perth was scheduled to be on a much newer Dreamliner. The down side is this red-eye flight would be just too short to get a decent nap. With an expected journey time of 5.5 hours, less the mandatory awake time for take-off and landing, and possibly a meal service, there really isn't much time left to sleep.
With a 1:10am departure, I wasn't in a hurry to get to the airport when I was comfortably enjoying wifi at my hotel's lobby lounge. By the time I got to the bus stop, the streets were awfully quiet and slightly unnerving. The trip to the airport was about half an hour only.
The bus dropped us off quite a distance away from the terminal entrance, and the winter night was chilly. Soon, I would be back in the tropical heat.

In addition to taking the bus, some arriving passengers were waiting in the designated area for their rideshares to arrive.

Inside, it looked like the terminal was ready to close for the night. Given the long gap for both departures and arrivals during the early hours, sleeping in this airport probably isn't possible?

A cheap fare lured me away from flying direct on Cathay tonight.

There wasn't a big crowd at Singapore Airlines' check-in counters.

After I was processed, I continued to explore along the linear terminal. There weren't many people around.

As I made my way to the land-side observation deck, I noticed a radar map of the state to set expectations on what's coming. The vast skies over this part of the country are quite empty.

Alternatively, you can refer back to the traditional arrivals board. Notice a lot of the international arrivals are from Bali and KL.

I pretty much had the observation deck all to myself. My plane was already parked at the gate ready to take us to Singapore.

Air-side, the terminal was generally empty as well. My gate was in a seemingly new and extended area.

Emirates has become a fairly formidible force in Australia, beating out Qantas and forcing them to bend into a partnership. With many Chinese airlines now offering rock-bottom fares to Europe as well, will the aviation landscape change once again?

First impressions of the Dreamliner were great. The interior decor is quite fresh and modern, a huge contrast to my inbound flights. Pillows and blankets were laid at every seat for us to rest during the red-eye.

On daytime flights, I get annoyed when the central dimmer activates and the colours change, hindering my photo-taking. This wouldn't be a problem on tonight's night-time flight.

As we prepared to depart, I glanced around the IFE interface, which is much better than the older planes. If this wasn't a red-eye, I would probably have enough to browse around for the entire duration of the flight.

We are going to depart heading southwest today, and my right side window would have a commanding view of the city. I was not disappointed as we looped around to head north.

I had a great week in Western Australia. Winters here were surprisingly not wet and pleasantly comfortable.

I think I stayed awake until we flew past Geraldton, where I drove from the day before. I took a snooze and woke up a few hours later for breakfast just before arrival.

Once the meal tray was cleared off, I examined the multi-component working desk in more detail. The complicated structure was one of the better ones in the sky.

More and more airlines are now offering wifi in-flight. Hope that doesn't mean noisy conversations and live-streaming to disturb the peace.

My connection in Singapore would be short and I didn't plan a day of sightseeing. My connecting flight didn't show up in the IFE though.

My next flight would just be steps away from my arrival gate.

With some 2 hours to go before my next flight's departure, I had time to wait for the other passengers to clear out so I could take more cabin photos.

Then I had even more time to explore Terminal 3, and the surprisingly quiet upstairs lounge which nobody else seemed to notice.

Prior Leg : Singapore - Hong Kong | Flight Reports Main

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After a dreadful inbound flight on Singapore Airlines' oldest and most outdated aircraft, I looked forward to a more refreshing trip home. When I booked this itinerary, the outbound from Perth was scheduled to be on a much newer Dreamliner. The down side is this red-eye flight would be just too short to get a decent nap. With an expected journey time of 5.5 hours, less the mandatory awake time for take-off and landing, and possibly a meal service, there really isn't much time left to sleep. With a 1:10am departure, I wasn't in a hurry to get to the airport when I was comfortably enjoying wifi at my hotel's lobby lounge. By the time I got to the bus stop, the streets were awfully quiet and slightly unnerving. The trip to the airport was about half an hour only. The bus dropped us off quite a distance away from the terminal entrance, and the winter night was chilly. Soon, I would be back in the tropical heat. In addition to taking the bus, some arriving passengers were waiting in the designated area for their rideshares to arrive. Inside, it looked like the terminal was ready to close for the night. Given the long gap for both departures and arrivals during the early hours, sleeping in this airport probably isn't possible? A cheap fare lured me away from flying direct on Cathay tonight. There wasn't a big crowd at Singapore Airlines' check-in counters. After I was processed, I continued to explore along the linear terminal. There weren't many people around.


As I made my way to the land-side observation deck, I noticed a radar map of the state to set expectations on what's coming. The vast skies over this part of the country are quite empty. Alternatively, you can refer back to the traditional arrivals board. Notice a lot of the international arrivals are from Bali and KL. I pretty much had the observation deck all to myself. My plane was already parked at the gate ready to take us to Singapore.


Air-side, the terminal was generally empty as well. My gate was in a seemingly new and extended area. Emirates has become a fairly formidible force in Australia, beating out Qantas and forcing them to bend into a partnership. With many Chinese airlines now offering rock-bottom fares to Europe as well, will the aviation landscape change once again?



First impressions of the Dreamliner were great. The interior decor is quite fresh and modern, a huge contrast to my inbound flights. Pillows and blankets were laid at every seat for us to rest during the red-eye. On daytime flights, I get annoyed when the central dimmer activates and the colours change, hindering my photo-taking. This wouldn't be a problem on tonight's night-time flight. As we prepared to depart, I glanced around the IFE interface, which is much better than the older planes. If this wasn't a red-eye, I would probably have enough to browse around for the entire duration of the flight.



We are going to depart heading southwest today, and my right side window would have a commanding view of the city. I was not disappointed as we looped around to head north. I had a great week in Western Australia. Winters here were surprisingly not wet and pleasantly comfortable. I think I stayed awake until we flew past Geraldton, where I drove from the day before. I took a snooze and woke up a few hours later for breakfast just before arrival. Once the meal tray was cleared off, I examined the multi-component working desk in more detail. The complicated structure was one of the better ones in the sky. More and more airlines are now offering wifi in-flight. Hope that doesn't mean noisy conversations and live-streaming to disturb the peace.




My connection in Singapore would be short and I didn't plan a day of sightseeing. My connecting flight didn't show up in the IFE though. My next flight would just be steps away from my arrival gate. With some 2 hours to go before my next flight's departure, I had time to wait for the other passengers to clear out so I could take more cabin photos. Then I had even more time to explore Terminal 3, and the surprisingly quiet upstairs lounge which nobody else seemed to notice.