S'pore, Japan civil aviation authorities collaborate to boost runway safety

The civil aviation agencies of Japan and Singapore are teaming up to improve runway safety after a fatal collision at Tokyo's Haneda Airport in January.

- Vanessa Paige Chelvan

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) said they are banding together to tap technology to prevent potential runway incursions.

They are also beefing up collaboration among parties that have an impact on runway safety, including airlines, airport operators, ground handlers and air navigation service providers, the two agencies said in a statement on Nov 18.

This came after CAAS director-general Han Kok Juan and JCAB senior deputy director-general Onuma Toshiyuki helmed the third Singapore-Japan dialogue on aviation collaboration in Kansai, Japan, on Nov 14 and 15.

Runway safety was thrust into the spotlight earlier in 2024 when an arriving Japan Airlines (JAL) jet collided with a smaller Japan Coast Guard plane on the runway at Haneda Airport on Jan 2. The captain of the coast guard plane had mistakenly assumed he had permission to enter the runway.