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NUS Aviation Club Visits the Singapore Aviation Academy

  • 20 Jul 2024
  • Text by Ilyssa Feng Yuan Yi, NUS Aviation Club

On March 8, 2024, NUS Aviation Club was invited to the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA) Open House, their final public open house before closing temporarily for renovations. SAA is the training arm of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), overseeing the training of Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs), Airport Emergency Services (AES), and other branches of civil aviation that keep our airports running and skies safe.

Simulator Image
A photo of the simulator. Photo: NUS Aviation Club

During the visit, our participants listened to talks by ATCOs and airport firefighters, and also got the chance to experience and walk through certain aspects of the SAA training facilities. We had the exclusive opportunity to step inside their simulator of Changi Tower, which offered a 360° view of the airport tarmac in any weather or lighting condition.

As I watched the team toggle the simulator between a bright, clear day and the drastically-reduced visibility of a haze-filled sky or monsoon rains, I gained a deeper appreciation of the kind of work ATCOs do. With climate change bringing about more dramatic and unpredictable weather, along with the increasingly common news of airport closures and flight cancellations due to poor weather, we don’t always remember that there are people behind these decisions, making tough calls backed by their extensive training in prioritising the safety of the flying public, regardless of external conditions.

It was a similar story interacting with Changi’s AES personnel who undergo intense training for scenarios that no one wishes will ever happen. It was fascinating to learn that their training differed significantly from traditional civilian firefighters due to the more intense, rapid and unpredictable conditions that surround air crashes and accidents. I was fully in awe of a video of an AES firefighter completing an obstacle course in full gear (between 25 – 27kg) in just a few minutes! It is truly a testament to the incredible strength, preparation, and hard work that happens quietly at the fire stations around Changi Airport that we implicitly feel safe stepping into an aircraft, knowing that there are always men and women ready for action should anything go wrong.

Photo of the AES experiential station at SAA. Photo: NUS Aviation Club

It was also heartwarming to share the space that day with young children brought to the open house by their parents, exploring the place, talking to aviation professionals, and having fun at the experiential stations. They donned miniature firefighting gear and marvelled at the size of the machines and fire hoses. Personally, my interest in aviation was something that appeared in childhood, and seeing children appreciate and marvel over aspects of aviation that are not necessarily the aircraft itself was a nostalgic sight for me. 

The significance of these events, which introduced the work of SAA and CAAS to the public, became clear when I spoke to fellow NUS students who had attended the event with limited background knowledge or just a fleeting interest in aviation. Education, being an aspect of the work at SAA, speaks to the success of the event given that our attendees departed the Open House with a much deeper appreciation of the work of aviation professionals and thoughts on how they might join or contribute to the industry in the future.

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