Changi Airport Terminal 5 redesigned to be resilient and pandemic-ready

The terminal is expected to be completed by mid-2030.

Changi Airport’s Terminal 5 has been redesigned to be resilient and pandemic-ready, prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said in his National Day Rally speech.

Lee said that because of the pandemic, the government had to postpone the tender to build T5. The plan was postponed for two years which Lee said created enough time for them to reassess the long-term prospects for air travel and improve the terminal design.

Lee explained that even before breaking ground for Terminal 4 and Jewel, they are already mulling the concepts for T5. T5 was made to be bigger than T1 to T4 put together.

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“In terms of capacity, T5 will have 50 million passengers, which is equal to T1 plus T3. But if you look at the way the airport is built, all the new parts of the airport, T5 and all these new half, in fact, we are building one more new Changi Airport. It is huge. Next to T5 we will develop the Changi East Urban District. This will be a new business and lifestyle destination, creating more jobs and opportunities for Singaporeans,” Lee said.

T5 was also designed to be able to operate more safely and flexibly during a pandemic. In particular, is the ability to scale operations up and down more easily and to isolate passengers from different flights to limit cross infection. It is also greener and more energy-efficient.

“Our decisions to press on with Changi T5 and Tuas Port send a strong and clear signal to the world that Singapore is emerging stronger from the pandemic, and charging full steam ahead,” lee said.