Passengers with mobility issues at Changi Airport have a brand new option for moving through transit areas in the form of autonomous wheelchairs.
The wheelchairs can transport the passengers across an entire crowded terminal without staff members needed to follow them.
Changi Airport is one of the world’s busiest airports, handling not only passengers travelling to Singapore, but also those in transit to other parts of the world.
According to Changi Airport Group (CAG), the growing passenger volumes also resulted in more passengers who require wheelchair assistance.
Each day, the airport receives around 2,300 requests, mostly from transfer passengers.
Four out of five requests also come from people who can independently walk short distances.
Currently, ground handlers such as SATS use various methods to serve their transport requests.
Aside from the usual manual wheelchair, SATS also uses a buggy to transport up to five passengers, and an E-caddy service that moves three passengers at once. Both require a staff member to act as the driver.
CAG and SATS thus partnered to trial a technology-enabled solution to complement manpower.
Enter the autonomous wheelchair, which brings a passenger along a preprogrammed route.
After the passenger buckles the mandatory seatbelt, the autonomous wheelchair will navigate through the crowded terminal, using an array of sensors for obstacle detection.
It comes with a luggage compartment on the rear for their belongings and music to warn others of its presence.
MS News witnessed a demonstration, where the wheelchair brought its passenger halfway across Terminal 3 at 3.5km/h, a comfortable walking speed for family members following along.
Travelling from one end of Terminal 3 to the shopping area would take around 15 to 20 minutes.
Despite substantial human traffic, the autonomous wheelchair safely reached its destination gate without any collisions.
At one point, the demonstration wheelchair even encountered another autonomous wheelchair moving a passenger.
After a short moment, both wheelchairs moved around one another and continued on their way.
Through it all, the only human interaction required was the staff member programming the route on a control panel at the start, and another helping the passenger off at the end.
Each journey is monitored by a SATS ground handling supervisor at a control centre. If human help is needed, the rider can use the control panel to stop and request for staff assistance.
Image courtesy of Changi Airport Group
SATS began operational trials in March 2025, with more than 13,000 passengers participating.
Following the successful trials, CAG and SATS have commenced the first phase of autonomous wheelchair deployment.
For the first phase, up to 18 autonomous wheelchairs will be deployed in the transit areas of Terminal 2 and Terminal 3.
SATS and CAG stated that the autonomous wheelchairs are another tool that staff can use. They are not intended to replace the other types of mobility transport altogether.
The 18 autonomous wheelchairs are expected to support around 10% of Changi Airport’s daily mobility demands.
SATS will assess a passenger’s suitability for the wheelchairs in advance for airlines which use their services.
If suitable, staff may offer it as an option, which the passenger can turn down.
Additionally, the autonomous wheelchairs are intended for passengers who can walk short distances and have a minimum layover time of 90 minutes.
Passengers who require more hands-on support will continue to receive physical assistance from trained staff in a more manual wheelchair.
Mr Damon Wong, Senior Vice President of Airport Operations Planning at CAG, said that those with reduced mobility can have trouble navigating a large airport.
The autonomous wheelchairs offer these passengers greater independence and convenience, while enabling frontline staff to provide more dedicated care to those who require higher levels of need.
Mr Edwin Tan, Vice President for APS and Terminal Services at SATS, added that the deployment marks another milestone in their journey to combine automation and people to deliver enhanced passenger experiences.
Also read: How Changi Airport ensures that not even disabled planes delay your trip for too long
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Featured image by MS News.