1          A very good morning to all of you.  I am very happy to see all of you here at this Conference on Passenger Facilitation, jointly organised by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA). Let me first extend a very warm welcome to all our Conference speakers and the participants, and especially our overseas guests. This is the first such conference jointly organised by IATA and SAA.  The participation in this conference of over 130 delegates from more than 40 countries, representing a wide spectrum of the aviation community, is a reflection of the relevance of this topic to the aviation industry.

Challenges of Passenger Facilitation

2          The global aviation industry worldwide has been enjoying strong traffic growth in recent years. IATA reported a 15.3% growth in international passenger traffic in 2004 over 2003, despite soaring oil prices. In the first half of 2005, international passenger traffic again grew by a rapid 8.8%. The average passenger load factor for the first half of 2005 was a high 74%.  

3          The robust growth can be partly attributed to the strong world economic growth in 2004, which was the highest in three decades. The vibrant growth in air travel is welcome news for all sectors of the air transport industry, particularly airlines and airports. However, the higher passenger traffic movement also put an increasing strain on both airports and airlines on maintaining a high level of service for their customers.

4          The increase in air travel has also thrown up several new factors which have an impact on passenger facilitation.  First, one new phenomenon is the growing number of first-time travellers.  Having never taken an aeroplane before, these travellers may need additional assistance navigating the airport as well as the aircraft.  Second, security and border control measures have been enhanced worldwide as a result of the continuing terrorism and security threats. Hence, we need to find the appropriate balance – the balance between safeguarding security versus the smooth facilitation and clearance of passengers through our airports. Third, the challenge is not merely coping with more travellers.  With more travellers also come increased baggage volumes.  So unless we devise new and better ways to cope with the rising travel demand and the increased security requirements, we risk turning passengers off with long waiting times, flight delays, overcrowding and safety fears. 

Global Initiatives on Passenger Facilitation

5          These are concerns which apply to the entire global aviation industry. To promote efficient and hassle-free travel, airlines, airports, aviation authorities, border control and security agencies must therefore all play their part to re-examine the issues and processes, and initiate improvements.  However, we do see positive signs of increasing collaboration among the aviation industry and government authorities in developing practical and impactful initiatives. Let me share some examples.

6          Firstly, there have been improvements in customs and immigration procedures.  After a long flight, passengers usually dread the long queues at immigration which they often encounter at airports.  Some passengers also face the prospect of interrogation and security checks, something which no one enjoys or welcomes.  Thus, it is encouraging that under the leadership of ICAO, various measures have been introduced to standardize travel documents, rationalise border clearance systems and procedures, as well as enhance international cooperation to tackle security issues.  A major step forward has been the requirement for ICAO Contracting States to issue Machine-Readable Travel Documents (or MRTDs for short) by 1 April 2010.  The goal is to make travel documents fraud-proof, and to prevent terrorists and criminals from penetrating national borders.

7          Secondly, we have seen improvements made to ticketing and check-in procedures.  Airlines around the world are also working speedily towards seamless air travel by simplifying ticketing and check-in procedures. Spearheaded by IATA, these initiatives include e-ticketing, common use self-service kiosks for check-in, bar-coded boarding passes and radio frequency identification for baggage handling. Besides facilitating passenger flows, these moves are expected to save airlines millions of dollars.

8          A third aspect where considerable progress has been made is in the area of information exchange.  To balance security concerns and passenger facilitation, exchange of passenger data has been identified as a critical means to improve aviation security while facilitating border control. Much progress has been made, with ICAO and IATA developing guidelines and industry standards to facilitate the accurate collection and transmission of Advance Passenger Information. There remain, however, some major issues still to be addressed, one of which is the issue of privacy.  

Singapore’s Experience

9          Let me now share some of the initiatives undertaken by Singapore Changi Airport to enhance passenger facilitation. As a major airport, Changi Airport has always endeavoured to provide the best experience for air travelers. We call this the “Changi Experience".  Changi Airport is constantly mindful of the need to strike a balance between enhancing passenger security and maintaining our high standards of passenger facilitation. Last year, CAAS implemented a US$50 million hold baggage screening system which automatically screens all checked-in baggage for explosives. This new system not only standardised and improved the security level for check-in baggage screening, it also reduced the clutter in the check-in halls, leaving more room for passenger movement.

10        Changi Airport also operates a decentralised gate security screening at the gate hold rooms. In September last year, to speed up passenger processing at the gates, Changi increased its number of x-ray machines deployed at the gates by 30%. The number of staff performing the screening work has also been increased by nearly 70% to over 500.