Changi Airport Group (CAG) will close down the Budget Terminal on September 25, 2012, in order to make space for a new terminal – Terminal 4.
According to CAG, this move will “cater to the continued growth of air traffic at Changi Airport and further strengthen Singapore’s air hub status.”
Changi Airport, designed to handle a total of 70 million passengers per annum across all three terminals, clocked 46.5 million passengers in 2011 meaning there is no urgent need for the airport to expand because there is room before the airport reaches its saturation point, however, the new terminal will ensure the airport does not get congested at any point. “CAG believes in planning ahead to ensure there is capacity to handle further increase in traffic demand,” stated the airport’s official release.
Terminal 4 will add a capacity of 16 million passengers per annum, up from the Budget Terminal’s current capacity of 7 million passengers. The airport claims the new terminal “will be designed to enable efficient passenger processing and quick turnaround of aircraft, and will not have aerobridges.” Unlike the current Budget Terminal, the new terminal will also have better facilities such as retail and food and beverage outlets.
When the Budget Terminal ceases operations, all low-cost carriers will transfer operations to Changi Airport’s Terminal 2. Construction of the new terminal is scheduled to begin in 2013 and is expected to be complete by 2017.
There will be a difference in costs for passengers of the budget carriers when switching to the main terminal. Instead of paying a total S$18 (US14) in Passenger Service Charges (PSC) and Passenger Security Service Charges (PSSC) when departing from the Budget Terminal, passengers will need to pay S$28 (US$22), which is applied to all passengers departing from Terminal 2.
Though the move may seem strange at a time when budget travel is growing exponentially in the region, it does make sense: the original Budget Terminal was built to minimise operation costs therefore it lacks any fancy facilities. With low-cost travel set to expand, the airport will need a better facility to absorb the growth. Furthermore, the Budget Terminal can only handle Boeing B737 and Airbus A320 aircraft, which would be inadequate as low-cost carriers expand and use larger aircraft.
Also, according to Alex McWhirter, consumer editor at Business Traveller, neighbouring Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s new terminal, KLIA2, is scheduled to launch operations in early 2013 thus obliging Changi to up its game in order to maintain its position as a leading airport in the region.
For more information, visit www.changiairport.com
Alisha Haridasani
