Turkish Airlines has quietly become the newest way to get between Sydney and Singapore. From 26 October, the Star Alliance carrier's five-times-weekly Sydney–Istanbul service now stops in Singapore instead of Kuala Lumpur, and — crucially — it has fifth-freedom rights, meaning you can book just the Sydney–Singapore leg without going anywhere near Türkiye.
The service first launched in late 2024 running through Malaysia, but the switch to Changi coincides with the airline's northern winter schedule and puts both its Australian gateways — Sydney and Melbourne — through the same Southeast Asian hub. The aircraft is an A350-900, one of the more comfortable long-haul planes flying today.
Flight numbers have changed too: TK023 now operates Sydney to Istanbul, with TK022 on the return. Timing-wise, TK023 leaves Sydney at 9pm, lands in Singapore at 3.20am, then continues at 5.05am to reach Istanbul at 11.20am. Coming back, TK022 departs Istanbul at 3.50pm, arrives Singapore at 7.40am, and touches down in Sydney at 7.05pm the same day.
Why should you care if you're not heading to Istanbul? Because Sydney–Singapore is one of the busiest routes out of Australia, and Turkish Airlines just joined Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Scoot and British Airways on it. More competition generally means sharper fares and more schedule choice — and a 9pm departure out of Sydney suits travellers who'd rather not burn a whole day getting to the airport. For anyone actually connecting through, Istanbul remains Turkish Airlines' sprawling hub to Europe, Türkiye and beyond, so the option to fly one airline the whole way with a single stop is still intact.
Worth noting: the 3.20am arrival in Singapore is antisocial if Singapore is your final destination, so compare it against Singapore Airlines or Scoot timings before booking. But for award travellers, Turkish Airlines' own Miles&Smiles programme and Star Alliance partners make this a genuinely new way to redeem points on the Kangaroo Route corridor. Travel agents have another lever to pull for clients bound for either city — and anyone chasing a cheap Sydney–Singapore fare now has five airlines to play off against each other.
