Singapore's Changi Airport to raise flying fees to fund upgrade

Fee hike will aid in covering the cost of rising demand for air travel

Singapore's Changi Airport will charge passengers and airlines more to fly in and out of the city-state to help finance a S$3 billion ($2.3 billion) upgrade of its terminals.

The operator of one of Asia's most-loved airports said in a statement Thursday that the hike in fees, between 2025 and 2030, will aid in covering the cost of rising demand for air travel while enabling the airport to stay competitive.

"As a major air hub for the Asia-Pacific region and beyond, Changi Airport is well-poised to serve this rise in demand and provide better connectivity to travelers," it said. "The aviation sector will continue to be a key driver of economic growth for Singapore and provide more and better jobs for Singaporeans."

Most of the money will go toward upgrading baggage handling systems, expanding check-in desk facilities, improving air-side infrastructure and also paying for some wider refurbishments of the facilities outright, such as Terminal 3, which will be 20 years old by 2030.

A passenger service and security fee for people departing from Singapore currently costs S$46.40 a flight, which is baked into ticket prices. By April 2030, that will come to S$58.40, a 26 per cent increase. There will also be a one-time increase to the aviation levy from S$8 to S$10 in 2027.

Fees for transit passengers stand at S$6 now and will rise to S$18 gradually by 2030.

For everyday passengers, the added cost translates into about a 1 per cent rise in airfares relative to the average cost of an economy class ticket, according to Thursday's statement.

Some of the new air-side facilities include more remote aircraft parking stands that can be used for both passenger and cargo jets, bringing the total number of aircraft stands to more than 200.

Some taxiways will also be reinforced to accommodate the eventual arrival of Boeing Co.'s new B777X family of planes, which will be the world's longest twin-engine aircraft.

Various systems for the Skytrain that links the airport's terminals, including signaling and communications, will be replaced and new cars will be added for additional capacity.