For the first time ever, the world’s biggest passenger plane has landed at Alice Springs Airport. And not just one.

Four of Singapore Airlines’ enormous ‘Super Jumbos’—and an assortment of aircraft from the airline and its subsidiaries—will call Alice Springs home will the global economy stays in hibernation mode.

“With so few services running, the world’s airlines are grounding their fleets in suitable locations like Alice Springs.”

The Travel Authority Group’s CEO, Peter Hosper.

“The images of these huge aircraft parked in remote places really are astonishing,” he added.

Why Alice Springs?

The Red Centre’s arid climate is consistently dry with very little rain, no storms, and relatively low humidity meaning little risk of corrosion for aircraft components. Singapore’s tropical climate with its abundant rainfall and humidity, on the other hand, is not ideal for aircraft storage.

Another well-known region that supports “airplane boneyards” is the Mojave Desert in the United States.

The Victorville aircraft boneyard on the edge of the Mojave desert in Southern California.

However, far from being a “boneyard” where aircraft are broken up for parts and scrapped, APAS provides maintenance for the stored aircraft until their airline or leasing company owners want them back.

The aircraft are being parked at Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage (APAS) located at Alice Springs Airport. APAS owns and operates an aircraft storage and maintenance facility that caters for short, medium and long term storage needs for the airline industry.

The four Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 aircraft will make good use of Alice Springs’ main runway and apron, which unlike many regional airports, can handle every type of aircraft that operate in other major airports.

Alice Springs Airport General Manager, Dave Batic, said this was an exciting opportunity for Alice Springs.

“The COVID-19 situation has presented many unique opportunities for Alice Springs Airport and one of these includes allowing our airline partners to store their aircraft at our facility,” Batic said.

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