Singapore Airlines to operate A380 aircraft from May

Singapore Airlines Monday said it will deploy Airbus A380 - the world's largest passenger aircraft - on select routes in India from May.

"A380 superjumbo will operate daily to both Mumbai and New Delhi with effect from May 30, 2014, taking over from two daily flights that currently serve each city using smaller Boeing 777s," the airline said in a statement.

"Another daily flight will continue to be operated with B777s. In total, 14 flights will serve each city per week."

The decision comes after the government allowed Airbus A380 to fly into the country in January.

The civil aviation ministry had lifted the ban imposed in 2008 on the ground that operation of A380s could work against the interest of Indian passenger carriers.

However, industry insiders said that not just passengers, but airport operators are also expected to benefit from the revocation of the ban on Airbus A380s' operations in India.

It is expected that A380s operations will increase airport revenues and help in decongestion during the peak travel season.

Other major international passenger carriers such as Emirates and Lufthansa have shown interest in operating A380 aircraft in India on various international routes.

At present only four airports - Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore - have the required infrastructure for handling A380 operations.

The super jumbo can accommodate up to 853 passengers in a single-class configuration.