Shanghai-Bound: How Singapore Airlines Managed our Missed Connection

Hello from Shanghai! I haven’t visited China since I was a kid. But between my parents wanting to go on a family trip and Singapore Airlines offering bargain A$750 return fares from Perth, the offer was too good to pass up.

How I booked and earned points

We booked in September 2023 for travel at the end of May 2024. At this price point, we got an Economy Lite ticket with a 25kg baggage allowance. There is no free seat selection, and absolutely no changes or cancellations are permitted.

I added my Velocity Platinum membership to earn 4,796 Velocity Points + 80 Status Credits overall. With Family Pooling, my wife’s earnings also went to me, so I pocketed double that amount.

Visiting the Perth SilverKris Lounge

This was our first visit together to Singapore Airlines’ new SilverKris Lounge in Perth, and it didn’t disappoint.

A 3:30 am wake-up for SQ224 from Perth to Singapore is never fun, but the staff were cheerful and served up an excellent cappuccino adorned with the Singapore Airlines SilverKris logo.

Over at the open kitchen, highlights included Singapore-style kaya toast with soft-boiled egg, and a Reuben sandwich.

SQ224 – Perth to Singapore

Unfortunately, Perth was experiencing a disruptive thunderstorm, and our departure was delayed by an hour. The issue? Our transit in Singapore was also an hour, so it seemed inevitable that we’d miss the connection. But everything was on the one ticket, we weren’t too concerned.

Singapore Airlines’ Boeing 787-10s have comfortable Economy seats in a 3-3-3 layout. I’ve never experienced any issues with the legroom in these seats. The in-flight entertainment screens were large, and the content looked crisp on them.

For this morning flight, my wife wasn’t particularly taken with any of the default items on the menu. Instead, she decided to order a fruit platter special meal. Not only did she receive a comprehensive bowl of cut fruits, but the bread roll and yoghurt were also replaced with even more fruits!

I stuck with the simple seafood egg noodles with shrimp, fish and leafy greens. This meal was absolutely fine as far as Economy breakfasts go, except it was notably missing the leafy greens.

Midway through the flight, I checked the Singapore Airlines app. It still works if you connect to the ‘KrisWorld’ onboard network, even if you don’t have an active internet plan.

I could see that we had been booted onto the next flight to Shanghai, departing around 4.5 hours later. I was impressed with the app, as it allowed me to choose new seats on the flight, so I moved us to an empty row.

Our delayed transit in Singapore

After we landed in Singapore, the cabin crew announced a long list of connecting flights (including ours) and asked those passengers to see the ground staff. It turned out that six different flight connections had been impacted, and everyone on those had been rebooked.

Once again, the procedure here was flawless and a testament to Singapore Airlines. Local SATS staff set up a trestle table and had already printed out new boarding passes for everyone. We also received a S$15 lunch voucher each, valid at four outlets in Terminal 3.

With plenty of time to spare, we decided to quickly fill out the online Singapore arrivals form and go landside to Jewel for a roast meat lunch.

Since I booked this flight with my American Express Platinum Card, I also submitted a claim for travel inconvenience coverage. The insurer reimbursed us for our lunch cost as the overall delay was over four hours.

Back in the terminal, we pooled our S$15 lunch credits to buy some single-origin compostable coffee capsules from The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

SQ836 – Singapore to Shanghai

I was somewhat dreading our original connection, SQ832 to Shanghai, as it was a hectic flight with no hope of an empty middle seat.

But the situation couldn’t have been more different on SQ836. It was so empty that nearly every travelling party could have a spare seat or even a row to themselves.

Singapore Airlines’ Economy dinner menu hit the right notes. The braised chicken was juicy and sweet on a bed of springy noodles. I had the herb-crusted fish, which came served on a creamy bed of mashed potatoes.

Final words

We landed in Shanghai just before midnight, ready for a week of delicious and authentic bites around the city. Overall, we can’t fault Singapore Airlines’ service, especially as passengers on the most budget fare the carrier offers.

If you don’t travel often, my advice for a smoother travel experience is to book connecting flights within the same itinerary wherever possible, as the airline is responsible for getting you onto the next flight.

Finally, always have your travel insurance Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) on hand, downloaded as a PDF file on your phone. You’ll never know when you might need it.

Also read: Finnair Airbus A350 Business Class review