Fans turn up at Seletar Airport hoping to see Taylor Swift

Aqil Hamzah
The Straits Times
Feb 27, 2024

There was an air of anticipation at Seletar Airport on Feb 27 as security officers set up barriers and Swifties awaited the arrival of Taylor Swift. Her chartered flight touched down at 5.05pm, and the superstar got off Flight VJT993 – a Bombardier Global Express jet.

The 34-year-old pop singer, who had concluded the Australian leg of her The Eras Tour at Sydney’s Accor Stadium on Feb 26, is on a mission to make more magic at her next stop – Singapore.

According to flight-tracking website Flightaware, she set off from Sydney at 11.58am local time (8.58am Singapore time), with the flight taking about eight hours.

While not many fans turned up at the airport, Flightradar24, a separate flight-tracking website, showed that Swift’s was the most tracked plane as at 5pm, with more than 6,000 people following its flight path.

Taylor Swift fans at Seletar Airport on Feb 27. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO

Among those who turned up at Seletar Airport hoping to get a glimpse of her was 24-year-old undergraduate Tricia Chan, who was accompanied by her mother, 58-year-old housewife Sophia Chan.

Miss Chan said: “The fact that I am here at the airport is crazy. I have never done this before. But I have been a fan since her debut album, and I am really looking forward to attending the concert on March 9.” Swift will be performing on March 2, 3, 4, and 7, 8, 9.

Upon landing, Swift and her entourage boarded black Toyota Alphards. There was speculation she would be staying at Marina Bay Sands, the official presenting partner for her tour here.

The convoy appeared to be heading there, only to bypass the hotel and head for Sentosa, stopping at luxury resort hotel Capella at about 6.20pm.

Taylor Swift’s convoy entering Capella hotel in Sentosa on Feb 27. ST PHOTO: SAMUEL RUBY

Even before her first concert at the National Stadium on March 2, Taylormania has swiftly drummed up excitement in the singer’s sole South-east Asian destination.

MBS announced on Feb 26 that it will host curated events to celebrate the concerts, including transforming parts of The Shoppes and Sands Expo & Convention Centre into Swift homages and holding a light and water show from Feb 28 to March 7.

It will also have a retail pop-up at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre’s Hall C, which will be open from Feb 29 to March 9.

Hotels have also experienced a boom in demand, as more than 300,000 fans from across the region make their way to Singapore. MBS, which offers a slew of premium packages starting from $10,000, has sold all of them, including a $50,000 package, which includes VIP tickets and passes to tourist attractions.

• Additional reporting by Eddino Abdul Hadi