Singapore, Indonesia apply to ICAO for approval on airspace realignment
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SINGAPORE – Singapore and Indonesia have jointly applied to the international body overseeing airspace management to approve the realigning of both countries’ flight boundaries.
This comes a year after the two countries concluded an agreement that
Under this agreement, Indonesia will also delegate the provision of air navigation services for a part of this realigned airspace to Singapore for 25 years.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Thursday that both countries last week applied for approval from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for the new arrangements.
He was speaking at a joint media conference at the Istana alongside Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who is in Singapore for the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat.
The agreement on airspace management, along with an agreement on defence cooperation and another on the extradition of fugitives, was concluded in 2022 when the leaders met in Bintan. The three agreements collectively come under an expanded framework
PM Lee said he was happy that both sides have ratified all three agreements, adding that Singapore and Indonesia “have come a long way to get here”.
After the ICAO gives its approval for the new airspace arrangements, both countries will agree on a date for the three agreements to come into force.
Speaking after PM Lee, Mr Widodo said both sides have also agreed to work out the technical arrangements for the implementation of the three agreements.
Under international law, global airspace is divided into FIRs – which do not neatly follow territorial boundaries – to ensure aviation safety. Countries are responsible for providing flight information and navigation services in their assigned FIRs.
The concluded agreement, which is now with the ICAO for approval, realigns the boundary between the Singapore and Jakarta FIRs.
The Singapore FIR, which air traffic controllers here have managed since 1946, currently covers the airspace over Indonesia’s Riau and Natuna islands.
Under the agreement, this airspace will come under the Jakarta FIR, but Singapore will be delegated to continue providing air navigation services in portions of this airspace for 25 years.
At the joint media conference on Thursday, PM Lee said: “The three agreements on these longstanding issues will bring lasting benefits to both sides.
“The successful outcome reflects our strong bilateral relations and shows that Singapore and Indonesia can gain substantial mutual benefits through open and constructive engagement.”
After the conclusion of the three agreements under the expanded framework in 2022, analysts had hailed the development as a breakthrough, noting that it started a new chapter in bilateral ties.
Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a media statement on Thursday that “the resolution of these longstanding issues is a testament to the strength and maturity of our bilateral relations”.
During their meeting, PM Lee and Mr Widodo agreed that the bilateral relationship had strengthened substantially over Mr Widodo’s two terms as president, providing a solid foundation to develop new areas of cooperation that are deep, multifaceted, forward-looking and mutually beneficial for future generations, Singapore’s MFA added.
