Changi Airport Terminal 2 to be suspended for 18 months from May

Operations at Terminal 2 (T2) of Changi Airport will be suspended for 18 months from May 1, according to Changi Airport Group (CAG).

CAG said details of airlines’ relocation to other terminals will be published on the Changi Airport website closer to May 1.

The suspension of operations will allow for the current T2 expansion works to be accelerated with expected completion, currently scheduled for 2024, brought forward possibly by up to one year.

“With airlines suspending flights in response to the sharply reduced travel demand, the consolidation efforts seek to help our airport partners during this difficult time,” said CAG executive vice president of airport management Tan Lye Teck in a statement.

“While the scale of our operations will be reduced in the near term, Changi Airport remains open to serve the airfreight and passenger flights that continue to operate.

“Even as our airport capacity is being optimised for the current situation, we will have the flexibility and we stand ready to ramp up operations quickly once the recovery takes place,” said Tan.

Meanwhile, in view of the very small number of flights at Terminal 4 (T4), operations at the terminal have been scaled down considerably with a small number of aircraft boarding gates kept in use and shops allowed to close early after the last flight for the day.

If the remaining airlines at T4 choose to suspend or adjust their flight schedule, CAG will also consider suspending operations at T4 temporarily but with the objective of restarting operations quickly when airlines confirm the resumption of flights.

The consolidation will enable CAG and its airport partners to save on running costs such as utilities and cleaning as well as to optimise resources across the airport’s terminals to better match the low travel demand and airlines’ flight operations.

On a separate development, the republic’s Ministry of Transport announced that the Airport Development Levy will be waived from April 13, 2020 to March 31, 2021.

The levy was introduced on July 1, 2018 to help fund airport developments, including the new Terminal 5 (T5), and related infrastructure at Changi East.

Currently, passengers beginning their trips from Changi Airport pay a rate of S$10.80 (RM33), while passengers starting their trips elsewhere and connecting through Changi Airport pay a rate of S$3.

The levy is payable by passengers departing from or connecting through Singapore Changi Airport.

It will be waived for passengers whose airline tickets are issued between the date for travel over the same period.

- Bernama