SINGAPORE AIRPORT (Improvement to technical facilities)

Mr Yeoh Ghim Seng asked the Deputy Prime Minister what measures are being taken to improve the technical facilities at the Singapore Airport so that it will acquire a reputation among international airlines as an equal to the safest airports in the world.

Dr Toh Chin Chye: Mr Speaker, the Member for Joo Chiat need not really worry that Singapore Airport lacks a reputation as being a safe airport. The fact that there are 20 airlines operating through Singapore is eloquent evidence that facilities at Singapore Airport are acceptable to them. And, in fact, there is a Facilitations Committee which consists of my officials as well as representatives from the airlines which meets frequently to discuss what measures we ought to introduce at the Singapore Airport that will make commercial operations viable.

The I.C.A., or the International Civil Aviation organisation, of which Singapore is a member, prescribes standards regarding airport operations. They include air traffic control, radio communications, air navigational and landing heads, fire and rescue services, meteorological and other aeronautical information services. As far as Singapore is concerned, we have complied with the prescribed standards, and the Member no doubt is referring to a newspaper article published sometime ago in which criticism was directed at all airports in Asia, excepting Hongkong.

I would like to remind Members of the House that the approach to Singapore is free of hilly obstructions; neither do we suffer the disadvantage of having fog which interferes with the vision of pilots. Because we do not have these disadvantages, we must, therefore, use our common sense and discretion in equipping Singapore Airport.

I might mention that once upon a time Singapore had housing by-laws which were taken wholesale from the United Kingdom building by-laws when Singapore was under colonial administration. One by-law insisted that the roofs of houses in Singapore must be built at an angle of 60° so that when snow falls the snow will slide off the roof. It was only in recent years that we removed this by-law as it was patently obvious that snow does not fall in Singapore.

The moral that I would like to draw is that it would be foolish for us to insist on, or to have imposed upon us, the facilities and standards which are required only in those airports which face the perennial problem of fog or hazardous approach due to obstruction by hills.