SINGAPORE – A Singapore Airlines flight to Frankfurt was delayed for more than 1½ hours on April 22, after a catering truck grazed the front of the plane’s engine at Changi Airport.

The return flight, scheduled for later that day, was subsequently cancelled because of the delay and a curfew at the Frankfurt Airport in Germany, the flag carrier said in a media reply on April 23.

An SIA spokesperson said flight SQ326 was scheduled to depart Singapore for Frankfurt at 12.35pm on April 22.

But the flight was delayed after a catering truck grazed the Airbus A380’s engine cowling.

No passengers were on board the aircraft when the incident occurred, the spokesperson said, adding that there were no injuries.

SIA did not disclose the truck’s operator, nor the extent of the damage to the plane’s engine. The Airbus A380 is the world’s largest commercial passenger jet and is equipped with four engines.

Affected passengers were offered refreshments while they waited for a replacement aircraft, the spokesperson added.

Top stories

Explore top stories from all sections in one place

Singapore

Public housing resale prices decline for the first time in close to 7 years in Q1 2026

Singapore

Private home prices rose 0.9 per cent in Q1 on brisk sales at Pinery Residences, Rivelle Tampines

Business

Plaza Singapura to get $160 million revamp that will ‘extend park experience indoors’

Business

Meta, Microsoft plan cuts, buyouts that may affect 23,000 jobs amid AI push

Singapore

NUS investigating student over racist remarks in viral Telegram videos

Singapore

Mature Khaya, sea apple trees being replaced around Singapore for safety reasons: NParks

Asia

For these Philippine cowboys, rodeo is tradition and livelihood, not just a Wild West import

World

Lebanon-Israel ceasefire extended by three weeks after Oval Office meeting

The engine cowling has since been repaired and the A380 aircraft is back in service, SIA added.

The flight departed Singapore at 2.13pm with 452 passengers and 28 crew on board, and arrived in Frankfurt, Germany, at 8.40pm local time that day, said the spokesperson.

Flight SQ325, which was slated to operate from Frankfurt to Singapore on April 22, was cancelled due to SQ326’s late arrival and the Frankfurt Airport curfew, the spokesperson added.

The flight operating hours at Frankfurt Airport run from 5am to 11pm local time, with no scheduled take-offs or landings allowed outside of these hours, according to the airport’s website.

Information on flight-tracking website Flightradar24 showed that the same plane was to be used for both flights.

The turnaround process – involving offloading passengers, cleaning, refuelling, catering and boarding new passengers – can range from 90 minutes to more than two hours for long-haul flights.

All passengers were provided with the necessary assistance, including hotel accommodation and rebooking of connecting flights, the SIA spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the airline sincerely apologises to all affected customers for the inconvenience caused, adding that the safety of its passengers and crew is always its top priority.

ST has contacted Changi Airport Group for more information.

SINGAPORE – A National University of Singapore (NUS) student is being investigated by the school and has stepped down from her student leadership position after videos of her making racist remarks went viral online.

The probe, which NUS said in a media statement on April 24 it had undertaken, comes as an online petition called on the university to take “serious disciplinary action” against the student.

The petition was started on April 19, and has garnered over 700 signatures as at noon on April 24.