The northern wing of Changi Airport’s Terminal 2 will reopen by October 2023 – a few months ahead of schedule, said Transport Minister S Iswaran on Wednesday (May 3).
In a speech at the Changi Airline Awards event to thank the airport’s airline partners, he said the faster-than-expected reopening of Terminal 2’s northern wing, originally slated for next year, will increase the total handling capacity of Changi Airport by 20 million to 90 million passengers a year.
This will surpass the airport’s pre-COVID-19 total handling capacity of 85 million, Mr Iswaran said.
Terminals 1, 3 and 4 have fully reopened, while arrival operations at Terminal 2 resumed in May 2022 and departures in October that year, after a two-year closure due to upgrading works and the COVID-19 pandemic.
When the northern wing reopens, travellers can look forward to new amenities as well as retail and food and beverage offerings, Mr Iswaran said.
The minister was also upbeat on the growth in passenger traffic at Changi Airport, from 40 per cent of 2019 levels in May last year to over 82 per cent of pre-COVID-19 levels in March.
“Based on the current trajectory, passenger traffic at Changi Airport should return to pre-COVID levels by next year or possibly sooner,” he said.
Apart from the planned construction of Terminal 5 by 2025, the minister also said there were plans to transform Changi Airport into a sustainable air hub.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) is currently studying 15 recommendations from an International Advisory Panel on Sustainable Air Hub.
