https://mothership.sg/2025/12/sia-passenge...
He said he would "escalate" the matter if he did not receive a satisfactory response.
A Singapore Airlines (SIA) passenger was disappointed after SIA declined his request for a birthday cake on his return flight.
According to email correspondence seen by Mothership, the passenger, surnamed 'Ong' and is 36 this year, booked a return flight back to Singapore, scheduled for the first week of January 2026.
His birthday comes two days after his flight.
However, Ong was informed that it was not SIA's policy to provide him with a birthday cake, likely because he did not meet the criteria.
No birthday cake
Ong reached out to SIA via email, asking for a birthday cake for his return flight. He will be flying to Shanghai, China, over the end-of-December, early-January period, and booked a Premium Economy seat.
After Ong provided his flight details and the date of his return flight, he was told that his request could not be granted as his departure date did not coincide with his birthday.
Ong said he was "disappointed" and "very displeased" with the responses he received.
In the email correspondence seen by Mothership, a customer service executive noted Ong's disappointment and added that birthday cakes are only provided when the passenger’s birthday falls on the exact date of travel, or one day before or after.
Request details
To request a birthday cake on an SIA flight, passengers may do so via the SIA application by using the live chat feature within the app. This is said to be the quickest method, since the application already has the passenger's details.
Alternatively, they may email "sq_social@singaporeair.com.sg". This should be done one to two weeks before the scheduled flight.
In addition, Mothership understands that certain criteria must be met before the request is granted.
Criteria needed
According to aviation enthusiast @danfliesthemile, the criteria differ depending on whether you're in first or business class, and whether you're in other seats.
For the former, the flight must be within three days of the birthday and have a minimum flight time of 1.5 hours.
For other seats, including Premium Economy, the flight must be within one day of the birthday, with a minimum flight time of three-and-a-half hours.
Ong noted in his email correspondence with SIA that he is taking a Premium Economy seat on his flight.
Wanted "flexibility" on "compassionate grounds"
Nevertheless, Ong said in his messages to SIA that he believes the airline should "exercise flexibility" on "compassionate grounds" when receiving such "simple requests".
He noted that he booked a flight back on the specific day so he could have an extra day to rest before celebrating his birthday in Singapore.
Ong accused SIA of showing favouritism toward "influencers" who supposedly received cakes even though they didn't meet the criteria. However, he did not name specific influencers or elaborate on how he knew they didn't meet the requirements.
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SIA passenger, 36, 'very displeased' after request for birthday cake on return flight rejectedHe said he would "escalate" the matter if he did not receive a satisfactory response. MOTHERSHIP.SG |
Reminded me that the crew serve cake & present to the window seat on my lane. I was at the outer seat.
I was like wa so gd? Vip? Order in advance?
"Ong accused SIA of showing favouritism toward "influencers" who supposedly received cakes even though they didn't meet the criteria."
just one word... cheapskate to the bone