Opening Address by Minister For Transport And Second Minister For Finance, Mr Chee Hong Tat at ITE College East’s Aviation Symposium and the Launch of Work-Study Diploma in Customer Experience Management (Cabin Services)

Ms Low Khah Gek, CEO, Institute of Technical Education,

Mr John Simeone, CEO, Jetstar Asia,

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

1.     Good morning. I am happy to be here today at the inaugural ITE College East Aviation Symposium, and at the launch of a new Work-Study Diploma in Customer Experience Management, for Cabin Services. 

Preparing for the Next Bound of Growth 

2.     2024 has been a good year for air travel. We have had some difficult years with Covid, but the industry remained resilient and we have bounced back since. International air travel reached pre-COVID levels, with Singapore keeping pace. Changi Airport saw a 15% increase in passenger traffic from 2023, and we expect to see a record number of passengers travelling through Changi in 2025. This means we have to expand our aviation workforce. Our aviation workforce, which was also affected during COVID, has exceeded pre-COVID levels. 

The future of aviation is bright

3.     The future of aviation is bright. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to have the fastest growth in passenger traffic over the next 20 years, making up more than half of global passenger demand by 2040. As a leading air hub in the region and the world, Changi is well-placed to capture this growth.

4.     As we turn the corner decisively from COVID, we also want to plan ahead for our air hub. The aviation industry is important, providing good jobs for young people like yourself and supporting many sectors of our economy. We will continue to invest heavily in our airport infrastructure, and make sure that Changi remains a competitive air hub The construction of Terminal 5 (T5) will begin in a few months. When T5 is operational in the mid-2030s, Changi Airport will have one of the world’s largest mega terminals. 

5.     We will also continue to invest in Terminals 1 – 4, ahead of T5. Last year, we fully rolled out passport-less clearance at Changi Airport to provide a more seamless travel experience. Changi Airport Group has also announced plans to improve existing check-in services and baggage handling, Skytrain connections, and replace end-of-life systems across all four terminals. All of these will go towards strengthening Changi’s position as an air hub. 

Investing in our aviation workforce

6.     As we invest in our physical infrastructure, we must continue to grow and develop our aviation workforce. Our workers are our critical competitive advantage  that contribute to the continued success of Changi. When people come through Changi, they will receive the ‘Changi Experience’. And we would not have the ‘Changi Experience’ without our workers who provide the human touch. 

Investing in our current workers 

7.     First, we are investing in our current workforce. The well-being of our workers is important, and we want to make sure that they are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive and build a lasting career in aviation.

8.     We have encouraged companies to leverage technology to better support our workers. SATS, for example, has started to adopt assistive equipment to reduce the amount of manual loading and unloading work for baggage. CAG is leading the ecosystem to develop and trial robotics for baggage handling, and the use of autonomous vehicles to automate repetitive towing activities, and in the process, upskill airside drivers.

9.     CAAS has also been working closely with the industry and our unions through our tripartite partnership to ensure that the aviation sector provides competitive wages. We constantly encourage our industry and tripartite partners to benchmark our wages against other sectors to makes sure we remain competitive. This includes both the starting wages for new hires, and how wages progress in tandem with skills, experience acquisition, and performance. 

10.    At the same time, we are investing in the airside workplace. We recognise that work on the airside can be demanding. As with all airports around the world, we have to contend with rising heat stress and increasingly unpredictable weather patterns. 

11.    We have plans to improve the workplace environment for our airport workers, including  for our ground handlers. CAG has developed plans to invest in enhancing staff facilities over the next few years, to enhance the safety and well-being of airport workers. This includes refresh pods to mitigate heat stress, – enhancements to lightning shelters, and improved staff lounges and rest areas. This is an area that we have looked into as part of our tripartite partnership and make improvements as needed. 

Investing into new pathways into the sector

12.    Second, a key part of supporting our current workers is developing new pathways into the sector. We want to provide our aviation workforce with ample opportunities to retrain and upskill, so that they are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive and build a good career in aviation. 

13.    We have urged companies to give our aviation workers the necessary support, including time and flexibility, to pick up new skills to help them excel in their current roles, andexplore different roles within the sector. I am very happy to see more and more companies utilising the NTUC Company Training Committee platform to identify the skills and training our workers need, and implement training plans to build up new competencies. 

14.    CAAS works closely with the Institutes of Higher Learning and the industry to identify growth areas within the aviation sector, including developing new Work-Study diplomas and programmes to support current and future workers in the development of new skillsets. 

15.    I’m encouraged that there are increasingly more Work-Study Diploma trainees in the air transport field; courses in which our aviation companies such as SATS, dnata and ST Aerospace Engineering participate in have seen increase in intake by more than two-fold since 2022. With the apprenticeship-based structure, students can spend up to 80% of the time gaining valuable experience through On-the-Job Training. This allows our graduates to get a headstart in the career while pursuing a nationally recognised diploma.

16.    Today’s launch of the new Work-study Diploma in Customer Experience Management for Cabin Services, will add to existing pathways for our students to choose. As air travel demand grows and airlines expand their fleet, demand for cabin crew leaders will grow in tandem. There will be more job opportunities for young people like yourselves. This specialisation allows new talent to meet their aspirations of achieving a Diploma qualification while flying around the world and provides in-service staff who want to upgrade themselves with an opportunity for upskilling and progression.

17.    I am glad that Jetstar Asia and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) will sign an MOU today; interested students and ITE staff will have the opportunity to do internships and industry attachments at Jetstar Asia. This shows the close nexus between industry and our educational institutions, bridging from training to work and employment. I want to thank Jetstar Asia for its strong support, and hope that Jetstar and other airlines will also contribute to shaping the curriculum for the new programme and ensure that it continues to meet the latest industry skills needs.

Investing in our young 

18.    Third, we want to continue investing heavily in our young. Today’s theme of “Empowering the next generation for aviation growth” is timely. I am happy to see so many students in our audience here today, including those from ITE and those from secondary schools under CAAS’s “Aviation in Schools” initiative which supports aviation as the focus for their applied learning programmes. 

19.    The Changi story will continue to be your story. With the continued development and growth of the air hub, I am confident that the aviation industry will provide many different opportunities in the sector. 

20.    When you go to the airport today, you may see some jobs and workers that you are more familiar with – pilots, cabin crew, immigration officers, and other airport staff guiding you through the airport. 

21.    Beyond this, there are many jobs that support Changi’s operations. This includes safety-critical crew who operate at our airside, ensuring our aircraft can take off and land safely. Thousands of workers ensure smooth baggage operations, and that bags from check-in counters reach the right aircraft, and the other way around for arriving passengers. Even more workers handle the entire cargo handling chain of activities, ensuring items like food, vaccines, even our Shopee packages, appear at our door. Many others work in technology and planning units to plan our concept of operations for the future. There are many different roles available which we are transforming through technology and job redesign to make sure that there are good opportunities for our young.

22.    Going forward, there will continue to be many opportunities. With developments in technology and Artificial Intelligence, there will be a need to see how these can help our air hub be even more competitive. 

Conclusion

23.    The aviation sector is the key engine of Singapore’s economy, supporting other industries such as the tourism and logistic sectors. Changi is an essential part of Singapore’s economy and if you are interested in entering this sector, there are many different options available. To all seated here today, I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to join the OneAviation family.