Shorter flights for travellers on some routes as S’pore, 5 other countries allow more direct paths

SINGAPORE – Travellers flying between Singapore and cities such as Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Auckland can expect shorter flight times on selected flights, as pilots take the most direct and efficient paths across participating airspaces.

A 15-month trial, which let pilots fly more optimised, fuel-efficient routes to their destinations, showed it can shorten flight times, save fuel and reduce carbon emissions when wind conditions are favourable.

The trial formally concluded on Oct 31, but the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said airlines may continue filing for these most optimal routes, with support from the six participating countries.

The six countries – Singapore, Australia, Fiji, Indonesia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea – allow pilots from eight airlines to choose the most direct and efficient paths across their airspaces while serving 70 city-to-city links. CAAS said it is also exploring additional city-to-city links for such future operations.

For now, the Singapore routes using these optimised paths, flown by carriers like Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Air New Zealand, include Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Melbourne and Sydney in Australia, as well as Christchurch and Auckland in New Zealand.

Besides potentially cutting flight time, allowing pilots to select the most optimal routes can improve comfort by helping pilots avoid areas of turbulence, for example. The lower fuel consumption may also reduce operating costs, and by extension, air fares, an analyst said previously.

This method of allowing pilots to select the most optimal routes is called user-preferred routing.

Pilots would otherwise rely on a fixed, traditional network of airways, akin to invisible highways in the sky, to fly from one point to another.

Eight participating airlines – SIA, Jetstar Airways, Qantas, Fiji Airways, Cathay Pacific, Garuda Indonesia, Air New Zealand and EVA Air – can continue to plan and file for flexible routings across the participating airspaces, CAAS said.

The trial initially covered 38 scheduled routes, including those from Singapore to Auckland, Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Christchurch, Darwin, Melbourne and Perth, as well as the Sydney-Singapore route.

This type of routing has been tested as far back as 2008. Its use across borders, however, has been limited due to the complexity of coordinating flights through international airspace controlled by different authorities.

The trial began on Aug 5, 2024, with air-traffic agencies from Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand and Singapore, along with their national carriers – Qantas, Garuda Indonesia, Air New Zealand and SIA.

SIA, Qantas, Air New Zealand and Fiji Airways – which joined the trial in July 2025 – said they would keep using these flexible routings.

SIA told The Straits Times it would continue doing so on selected Australia and New Zealand flights, including those between Singapore and Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Melbourne, Sydney and Christchurch.

“User-preferred routing gives pilots the flexibility to choose more direct, fuel-efficient routings when conditions permit,” an SIA spokesperson said. “This can reduce fuel burn and carbon emissions, and potentially shortens flight times, subject to operational considerations.”

Australian carrier Qantas said it would continue to use user-preferred routing under the same conditions applied during the trial. “This remains an important lever for airlines in reducing emissions and flying time,” a Qantas spokesperson said.

Air New Zealand said it would continue using this concept for every flight between Singapore and Auckland, where appropriate. It has been using user-preferred routing wherever available for more than a decade.

Such routings are “consistently the most efficient option in terms of fuel burn and emissions when they are available”, its chief safety and risk officer Nathan McGraw said.

The participating countries first agreed to extend the trial to April 2025 to gather more data. It was extended again to October 2025, this time widening the group to include more airlines and air-traffic agencies across the region.

From July 7, air navigation service providers Fiji Airports and NiuSky Pacific of Papua New Guinea joined the initiative, enabling flights such as those from the Fijian city of Nadi to Singapore – which passes through Papua New Guinea’s airspace – to use the more direct routing.

CAAS said early reports showed that using these routes on the Nadi-Singapore sector saved Fiji Airways an estimated 300kg to 400kg of fuel per flight.

Fiji Airways said it had trialled user-preferred routing on flights between Nadi and Singapore, and will continue the practice.

“One of the most significant insights (from the trial) was the improved operational flexibility, as user-preferred routing allows for greater safety margins when navigating around weather disturbances and active volcanic activity – conditions that frequently affect the Indonesian region,” said a Fiji Airways spokesperson.

The airline also confirmed it is contributing to the development of user-preferred routing guidance materials by providing feedback based on its experience during the trial.

CAAS said in August 2024 that the user-preferred routing trial was a key initiative in a larger project to roll out free route operations in South-east Asia and Oceania.

Free routing allows airspace users to plan optimal flight paths, considering airline preferences, weather and other factors, such as airspace restrictions.

Mr Vincent Hwa, CAAS director of air traffic services, said the trial demonstrated “clear and compelling benefits” of states working together across borders. “We can make better use of airspace and help save time, cost and fuel burn for airlines and travellers,” he said.

He added that the trial partners will develop guidance material based on the lessons learnt, with the aim of paving the way for a broader roll-out in the Asia-Pacific region.