Safer Airside Journeys at Changi Airport

For the 40th consecutive year since 1981, Changi Airport has been rated deficiency-free in 2020 by the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Association (IFALPA). IFALPA represents more than 100,000 pilots from almost a hundred member associations worldwide, and this rating is the testament that Changi Airport is one of the safest airports in the world to land and take-off.

Amongst many innovations that have contributed to its seamless passenger experiences, Changi Airport has become synonymous with global connectivity, its clockwork efficiency and unique, thoughtful services. Its airside operations are no exception, and the airport ensures that its airside workers remain skilled and qualified to maintain safety standards at all times.

This year, Changi Airport Group (CAG) introduced an airfield driving simulator to its Airside Driving Centre in Terminal 2. We speak to Eric Chan, Manager, Airside Management, to find out more.

Q: Why did the airport decide to adopt an airfield driving simulator?

Before the pandemic, Changi Airport handled over 380,000 flight movements that saw over 50,000 airside personnel and more than 3,700 registered airside vehicles and ground support equipment traversing the airside to support operations. With an average of 1,000 aircraft movements per day, it is both an operational and safety challenge for vehicles to drive around the aircraft manoeuvring areas for training purposes.

CAG saw a need to deploy a virtual reality (VR) simulator to enhance the competency of drivers operating in higher risk areas like the runways and taxiways in Changi Airport. We envisaged that the use of VR technology with a real-life driver cabin simulator mounted on a 3 DOF (degrees of freedom) motion platform, would help increase training realism while minimising risk to aerodrome operations.    

Q: What were the design considerations?

During the design stage, ST Engineering studied Changi Airport’s aerodrome plans in detail in order to model our Terminal 1 to 4 aerodrome environments virtually. This includes the 2 runways, connecting taxiways, aircraft stands and airside roadways, with the pavement markings, lights and guidance signs that you will find when driving in the actual aerodrome.

Within the simulation, you can experience real airside activity, such as aircraft taxiing, landing and taking off, with intelligent ground-handling vehicles and crew that react to your driving. These are instrumental to help a new driver familiarise with the airside and enables them to demonstrate their understanding of the ‘rules of the airside’.

The driving cabin is constructed from an airside vehicle with its original steering wheel, pedals and interior. We mounted it on a motion platform, surrounded by a 360-degree video screen that gives the driver peripheral views of the surroundings outside his driving cabin. The set-up is very immersive, and even provides the motion cues one experiences when starting, accelerating and stopping your vehicle. 

Q: What scenarios are the drivers tested on?

We need to ensure that drivers are cognizant of the restricted areas versus permissible driving areas, the speed limits and right of way when they are being trained on the different scenarios and when handling vehicle and communication malfunctions.

There are currently a total of 14 scripted driving scenarios of which:

• 6 scenarios are designed to train drivers operating on common airside roadways and taxiways where you will interact with aircrafts both on taxi and on tow.
• 8 scenarios are dedicated for CAT1R training where drivers, such as those from the airfield pavement inspection team and Airport Emergency Services, are expected to drive on runways during operations in Changi Airport.

Each scenario is designed to enable the driver to undergo the handling of both routine scenarios and special circumstances, such as giving way to taxiing aircraft and vehicle breakdowns, which drivers will not usually encounter. The simulator captures any safety or driving violations in real-time, and generates a report that can be used as a review with the driver.

Overall, the simulator enables our Airside Driving Centre to offer an evidence-based and objective testing approach to qualify our drivers and helps them become more aware of their strengths and areas for improvement.

Q: How has the experience been so far? What is the feature of the simulator that you like best?

Besides providing a realistic environment, the simulator allows us to better equip drivers with the skills they need to operate safely in the airfield. These include topography; manoeuvring in the presence of aircraft, and responding to exceptional situations such as radio and vehicle breakdowns.

What has been particularly useful is having a safe environment to test a driver’s response to nearby taxiing aircraft or an aircraft being pushed back from an aircraft stand, as the simulator allows repeatable scenarios in which drivers can practise with no risk.

Q: How does the simulator help to expedite the training process?

The simulator allows us to replicate both routine and ad hoc scenarios which drivers would expect to encounter in the airfield, without having to be physically at the location. Therefore, we were able to translate the travelling time and resources needed to travel between our driving centre and the training areas into productive training and asset utilisation time. This has helped CAG to improve training effectiveness.

Q: Any other recommendations for those who would like to improve airside safety?

CAG has been a strong advocate for safety. Besides leveraging on technology and innovation to enhance aerodrome safety, we maintain a robust safety management system to proactively manage risks associated with airside operations.

As safety is a shared goal, CAG also aims to promote a strong safety culture amongst all Changi Airport staff and stakeholders. A multi-faceted approach to safety management is key to safeguard lives and assets.

Download airside driving simulator case study

Professional Background

Eric is from the Airside Management division of Changi Airport Group. In his role, he enables the use of technology to improve CAG’s operational capability. With the intent to augment current driving centre operations, he oversees the commissioning of the airfield driving simulator as its project manager. Eric is also involved in airside planning and policy matters such as the adoption of electric vehicles as part of CAG’s focus for a green recovery post COVID-19.