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https://mothership.sg/2020/05/sia-planes-alice-springs/?fbclid=IwAR1gbL-oN9oyI181CubCTTQrspN0A1U3wJs8WOULNqh5_ajjFZVnr9DxxB8 SIA planes fly to Australia to park at Alice Springs for at least a few months Singapore Airlines, Scoot and SilkAir planes have flown to Alice Springs, Australia and they will remain parked in the desert airport for the next few months. News of the temporary relocation was reported in the last week of April 2020. A total of 17 aircraft across the three group airlines will be in long-term storage. They started making their way to Alice Springs Airport as early as April 25. Both Scoot and SilkAir are subsidiaries of SIA. At least four massive Airbus 380s have landed in Alice Springs, as well as three SIA Boeing 777-200ERs, two Scoot A320s, and six SilkAir Boeing 737 MAX 8s. The locals in Alice Springs greeted the unusual arrival with anticipation. It has been predicted the planes will be out of action for at least three to four months minimum. The number of A380s in Alice Springs reportedly amount to a 20 per cent cut in SIA's operational A380 fleet. Why Alice Springs? Alice Springs Airport is home to the region’s only long-term aircraft storage facility. A dry desert climate is essential for preserving aircraft in long-term storage. The planes would otherwise fare poorly if they are left continuously unused in humid environments like Singapore's. If business there is thriving, it is a harbinger of bad news for the aviation industry. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-28/during-coronavirus-pandemic-planes-parked-in-alice-springs/12189856?fbclid=IwAR0hwuvI_9Q9fLb9YnjDQC_gDZPlY33Kzga7O18_8sdC9-CI64VLM_GlaT0 It is the first time an Airbus A380 has landed in the Red Centre. The A380s are the latest planes to be mothballed in Alice Springs after six Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes — the model grounded globally after two crashes which killed a total of 346 people — touched down at the airport last year. The 580-tonne machines caught the eyes of many locals as they flew in for their Central Australian holiday on Sunday, in a rare direct flight from Singapore. With no word on when international travel will resume, the A380s might not be the last planes with a parking space in Alice Springs. And it isn't just residents who are excited by this chapter in aviation history. The latest batch of aircraft arrivals is another coup for the new Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage (APAS) facility in Alice Springs, which is spruiking the Red Centre as a leading storage port for airlines across the region. "Obviously it's not the ideal circumstances around the current situation with COVID-19, however this is a great opportunity for Alice Springs," he said.