SINGAPORE : Singapore Airlines may agree to delay flying the Airbus A380 super jumbo between Sydney and Los Angeles, in return for getting access to that lucrative trans-Pacific route.
SIA's chief executive Chew Choon Seng was quoted by Dow Jones Newswires as saying that the airline would be willing to negotiate on that issue.
He was in Sydney on Tuesday to unveil a scale model of the Airbus A380, and to meet Australian aviation officials.
SIA is pressing for approval to fly passengers between Australia and the US, a move that Qantas Airways strongly opposes.
The Singapore carrier hopes to get permission to fly directly to the West Coast of the US from Australia within 12 to 18 months.
For a start, it is aiming to have a daily service.
SIA is set to be the first airline to fly the A380, and it plans to use them on flights between Sydney, Singapore and London by mid-2006.
Qantas has also placed an order for the A380, but it is not expected to take delivery of its planes until late 2006. - CNA