SilkAir touches down in the top end

SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines, yesterday launched its first flight to the vibrant and historic city of Darwin, capital of the Northern Territory in Australia’s Top End. This new service gives customers the ideal opportunity to explore one of Lonely Planet’s top ten must-visit cities in 2012.

The inaugural flight MI801 departed Singapore Changi Airport at 0755 hours and will land in Darwin at 1405 hours. The return flight, MI 802, will take off at 1510 hours and is expected to reach Singapore at 1810 hours (all times local).

Darwin is SilkAir’s first destination in Australia, increasing the number of destinations in SilkAir’s route network to 39 in 12 countries. SilkAir will operate four times a week, departing Singapore on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, with next day return flights from Darwin. The services will be operated with Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft, both featuring business and economy class cabins.

To mark this special occasion, passengers on the first flight out of Singapore will be presented with a special gift from Darwin, a notebook covered in contemporary artwork by some of the Northern Territory’s world renowned Aboriginal artists.

Passengers travelling on the first flight out of Darwin will be served a celebratory drink and exclusively produced SilkAir notebooks.

“We are delighted to be adding Darwin and Australia to our network. The Northern Territory is an exciting destination and offers a plethora of memorable experiences to our travellers. With our award-winning cabin crew, seamless connectivity to the