Posted on 08/19/2013 8:06:21 PM PDT by TexGrill
SINGAPORE: Singapore will build a new terminal that will double the capacity of Changi Airport in a bid to retain its edge as a regional aviation hub, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.
Construction work would begin soon and would be completed in 12 to 15 years, Lee announced in his annual policy speech.
“T5 (Terminal 5) sounds like a terminal, but it is actually a whole airport by itself, as big as today’s Changi Airport,” he said.
Lee did not reveal the cost of the new facility, but said it would include a third runway that would double the capacity of Changi, which handled 51.2 million passengers last year.
Changi Airport, named the world’s best by Britain-based consultancy Skytrax this year, currently has three terminals with a total capacity of 66 million passengers a year.
In February, it started to demolish its terminal for budget airlines to replace it with a larger facility.
The new facility, Terminal 4, will have the capacity to handle 16 million passengers a year when it opens in 2017.
In his speech late Sunday, Lee said there was growing competition from other major international airports in South-East Asia.
(Excerpt) Read more at thestar.com.my ...
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