Singapore Airlines (SIA) will take over the Singapore (SIN)-Phuket (HKT) route from subsidiary SilkAir on March 4, the first step in the regional subsidiary being subsumed by mainline SIA.

The SIN-HKT route will be operated with a Boeing 737-800. “More SilkAir routes will be progressively transferred as nine [SilkAir] 737-800s join the SIA fleet,” SIA said in a statement.

“This would also allow SIA to operate the aircraft to points within its current network, starting with Brunei (BWN) in March 2021.”

The full integration of SilkAir into Singapore Airlines is scheduled for completion in the company’s fiscal year ending March 31, 2022.

SIA said the SilkAir 737-800s will have 12 business class seats and 150 economy seats when operated by SIA. Passengers will “step up to SIA’s award-winning suite of inflight offerings on regional routes” formerly operated by SilkAir, which offered a lower level of inflight service than full-service carrier SIA.

“The introduction of the SIA 737-800 will bring about a more comfortable and seamless travel experience for customers on our regional routes,” SIA CEO Goh Choon Phong said.

“Integrating SilkAir with SIA also allows us to be nimble and flexible in aircraft deployment and supports our fleet and network growth strategy.”

Photo credit: Nigel Howarth / Aviation Week