Speech by Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance, Mr Chee Hong Tat at the Women in Aviation International (WAI) Singapore Chapter Gala Dinner

Good evening 

Women in Aviation International Singapore Chapter (WAI-SG) President Lou-Ann Seet, 

Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, and Ministry of Transport, Dr Amy Khor,

Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) Director General Mr Han Kok Juan,

Board Members, 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1.     Thank you for inviting me to tonight’s Gala Dinner. I am happy to be part of WAI’s celebration of women in Singapore’s aviation sector. It is heartening to see so many women – and men – in the audience today, all of whom are valuable contributors to our aviation and aerospace sectors. 

2.     WAI launched its Singapore chapter three years ago – so quite a new organisation – in the middle of the pandemic. This is a strong signal of WAI’s belief in the future of aviation and the importance of bringing aviation professionals together in Singapore. Since then, WAI-SG has grown from strength to strength, in particular the launch of a mentorship programme last year in 2023, and the WAI-SG scholarship programme which was also launched last year. 

3.     The aviation sector has also recovered since the dark days of the pandemic. Changi’s passenger traffic levels have returned to close to 100% of pre-pandemic levels, and our aviation workforce has exceeded pre-COVID levels. So it’s good – companies are doing better, employers are hiring more, and as we contemplate the next bound for aviation, we can focus beyond recovery and grow. I will touch on three areas that would help us to prepare for the future. First, ensuring our air hub remains competitive. Second, investing in our workforce’s capabilities. And third, building a supportive aviation community. 

A Competitive Air Hub

4.     Let me start with a ‘competitive air hub’, which I think is an important start because if you don’t have a competitive air hub, then it’s going to be quite hard to talk about creating more jobs, creating more opportunities, and attracting more companies. I think this is quite fundamental. But looking at what has happened in the past few years since the pandemic has passed, we believe that the future of aviation is bright. International Air Transport Association has reported that the demand for air travel will double by 2040, with Asia-Pacific being a key engine of that growth. We are fortunate that we are in the right region and we are experiencing good growth momentum.

5.     Singapore is positioning ourselves to ride this wave. We will continue to grow capacity at Changi Airport to meet the growing demand. The construction of Terminal 5 will start next year. When operational in the mid-2030s, it will add capacity of 50 million passengers per annum to Changi. We will also continue to improve our connectivity, and we aim to grow Changi’s direct city links and network from almost 150 city links today, to over 200 links by the mid-2030s. 

6.     Nonetheless, competition in the region is heating up, and we must continue to take steps to ensure that our air hub stays ahead of the curve. 

7.     First, we have to continue to invest in innovation. Last month, we announced that CAAS would be setting up an International Aviation Lab to develop innovation solutions to transform airport operations. This is a unique collaboration that brings together expertise from aviation authority, research institute, airport operator, ground handler, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers – the different stakeholders in our ecosystem. This will allow us to drive airport transformation from an ecosystem perspective end-to-end. It opens up possibilities like how we might enhance aircraft designs, or enable standardisation across aircraft manufacturers and aircraft types, to better facilitate process automation between airlines and airport ground operations. 

8.     Second, we must be prepared to grow sustainably. As a major international hub, Singapore is committed to contributing meaningfully to climate action. We launched the Singapore Sustainable Air Hub Blueprint earlier this year, which sets out a balanced approach towards environmental sustainability, while ensuring that our air hub remains competitive. So we are not trying to choose between competitiveness or sustainability – we believe we can achieve both and we believe that it is important to do both. The Blueprint lays out our domestic and international targets, and concrete steps that Singapore will take to reduce our carbon footprint in aviation. This includes improving energy efficiency and deploying renewable energy at our airports and requiring flights departing Singapore to use Sustainable Aviation Fuel from 2026.  

9.     Third, we will reduce compliance burden and lower regulatory costs, and create a more business-friendly environment. The Government has set up aninter-ministerial committee led by Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong to review our regulatory and licensing rules and to help reduce time and costs for firms when they transact with government agencies. 

Investing in the Workforce’s Capabilities

10.    As the aviation sector continues to grow, the aviation workforce that supports its growth will be a critical success factor. We must also ensure that the sector continues to provide Singaporeans with good jobs. 

11.    Tonight’s dinner theme of “Empowering Future Leaders and Aviators” is both timely and appropriate. We want the younger generation to continue seeing aviation as an exciting sector with growth opportunities and exciting careers. We want to ensure that our next generation of aviation enthusiasts are equipped with the necessary skills. 

12.    CAAS has a suite of youth outreach programmes, including supporting aviation applied learning programmes in secondary schools under the Aviation in Schools Initiative, and conducting Aviation Learning Journeys for secondary school students and educators. 

13.    Our Institutes of Higher Learning produce around 1,800 aviation and aerospace-related fresh graduates annually. We will continue to work closely with them to incorporate emerging areas in aviation such as automation, artificial intelligence and sustainability in their course curricula.

14.    To complement existing efforts in youth outreach, I am pleased to announce that CAAS will assign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with WAI-SG at tonight’s gala dinner. Through this MOU, CAAS will continue and expand its efforts with WAI-SG to drive events and initiatives to inspire career exploration and promote awareness of opportunities in the aviation sector for young women. This partnership is timely as the aviation sector is growing, and companies are looking to hire more talents to power their growth.

15.    Even as we reach out to our youth, we must continue to invest in our current workforce. For instance, the airport community has been progressing well on trials on autonomous baggage-handling vehicles and belt loader extensions that facilitate the loading and offloading of baggage onto aircraft. Through the adoption of technology, we hope to reduce physically demanding work, and improve the overall productivity of our workforce. There can be many other roles within the aviation sector that can benefit from such job redesign and enhanced productivity. 

16.    Companies must also work with workers to ensure that their skillsets remain relevant. Our strong tripartite relationship between employers, the unions and the Government is integral to achieving this outcome. For example, companies can tap on the NTUC Company Training Committee (CTC) grant that can help support job redesign and productivity improvements to optimise work processes and develop their staff. This is a scheme by the government, through the Ministry of Finance, to give an amount of funds to the tune of $100 million to support NTUC. NTUC will administer this CTC grant and give it out to companies that form CTCs. And they can tap on the grant to co-fund up to 70% for the list of eligible items, including some of those that I mentioned.  

17.    SATS is one such example. It has tapped on the CTC grant to work with NTUC and the SATS Workers’ Union to pilot job redesign projects within the Passenger Services, Cargo and Apron businesses. These efforts are win-win as they benefit both employees and employer.

18.    CAAS has also launched a sector-wide manpower study, to see how to prepare our workforce for the future. The study will give us with insights to better understand the impact of trends such as digitalisation, automation and sustainability on our workforce. This will allow us to better support our companies to meet their manpower needs, and to be able to ensure that our workers have the skills needed to continue to thrive in the growing and evolving aviation industry. 

Building a supportive aviation community

19.    Finally, I would like to recognise WAI-SG for its work in building a supportive aviation community. Women are involved in Singapore aviation in various capacities – airlines, ground handling, engineering, cargo, just to name a few. Organisations like WAI-SG play a critical role in creating invaluable networks to support its members and reinforce the sense of community in aviation.    

20.    At this juncture, I would like to share some stories of WAI-SG’s members, who have benefitted from its programmes, as well as acknowledge those who have made these programmes possible. 

21.    Ms. Tina Matthiesen, an architect from ARUP currently working on the design of Changi Terminal 5. She is one of the mentees under WAI-SG’s mentorship programme. Tina has found that WAI-SG’s mentorship programme has helped her to better navigate her work environment, and to give her invaluable insight on culture, leadership and strategic decision-making. 

22.    Tina’s mentor is Ms. Tan Siew Huay, who is the Director of Special Projects (International Air Law) at CAAS. At last year’s Gala Dinner, we recognised Siew Huay as the first woman from Asia to receive the Flight Safety Foundation’s Gloria Heath Trophy. I am glad that Siew Huay is helping other women to pursue their passion in aviation through the WAI-SG mentorship programme. 

23.    Next, we have Ms. Anna Patsy Ong. Patsy previously spent 16 years as an airline pilot, and currently serves as a Flight Operations Inspector in CAAS. Patsy also helms the Mentorship Committee for WAI-SG, the steering committee that oversees WAI-SG’s mentorship programme. As one of the founding members of the programme, Patsy’s wealth of experience in navigating the aviation industry and her deep understanding of the needs of mentees in technical industry roles have been critical in supporting mentees and helping them to advance in their careers. 

24.    We have mentors who are able to share their personal experiences and career experience, and how young people are joining the aviation industry can do well in the industry. Some of these experiences will accumulate over time, but if you have someone that can share that with you it will speed up the learning curve. I think it is a very good programme and I would like to encourage more who feel that you can contribute to this programme to step forward and let WAI-SG know. And for those who are looking to get some advice or join the mentorship programme, please also let WAI-SG know and they can plan for a suitable mentor.  

25.    Next, we have Ms. Fahmida Anjum. An Airport Delivery Manager at Amadeus, Fahmida is also an instrumental figure behind some of WAI-SG’s programmes. For instance, Fahmida chaired WAI-SG’s signature Singapore’s Girls in Aviation Day event in 2023, which saw 370 girls, parents and teachers in attendance. This year, I understand that Girls in Aviation Day will take place next Saturday, and even more participants are expected! Fahmida also leads WAI-SG’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives. Her dedication has also influenced the next generation, and her 14-year-old daughter is an active WAI-SG Youth. 

26.    Tina, Siew Huay, Patsy and Fahmida are examples of how WAI-SG supports its members today, to build both capability and community. This will also go a long way towards supporting the next generation of aviation professionals. 

Conclusion

27.    Now let me end my speech - I thank WAI-SG for organising this Gala Dinner today to celebrate the women in our aviation workforce and the contributions that our women have made to our aviation industry I am confident that WAI’s work will continue to enable our aviation sector to soar to greater heights. Thank you very much.