Singapore Welcomes Visitors Again, Aims to Become the Busiest International Airport in Asia

Singapore is welcoming back visitors with hopes that the improvements made during the pandemic will once again reinforce their status as the premier aviation hub in Asia.

As borders reopen, most shops at the two Changi Airport terminals have reopened and many of the airport’s business partners have started hiring to prepare for a travel rebound and avoid labour shortage. New technology has also been installed to help improve the airport’s contactless services.

Restoring Changi Airport is vital to the city-state’s economy, as the aviation sector accounts for more than 5% of its gross domestic product (GDP) and provides over 200,000 jobs for locals.

“Changi is the most liberal airport we have in South-east Asia right now,” said Mohshin Aziz, director of the Pangolin Aviation Recovery Fund, which invests in aviation-related businesses.

“We are in this situation where the difference in policies will determine whether an airport is in the 21st century or in the dark ages.”

Singapore has set aside almost S$500 million to boost the city-state’s tourism revival.

For eight years in a row, Changi Airport ranked first in the annual Skytrax World Airport Awards as the “World’s Best Airport.” In 2021, however, they fell from the top spot and ranked third next to Hamad International Airport (HIA) and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (HND).