Watching Singapore Changi live
Three parallel runways on reclaimed land at the eastern tip of the island, and the best-run hub in the world.
The layout
Changi occupies the eastern tip of Singapore, on land reclaimed from the sea in the 1970s and again in the 2010s. Three parallel runways run north-north-east to south-south-west: 02L/20R on the west side, 02C/20C in the middle and the newer 02R/20L to the east, all 4,000 metres or more. Between the first two lie the four terminals in a ring around Jewel, the glass dome with the indoor waterfall, with the Skytrain linking them; the cargo and maintenance complexes sit to the north, and the site for the future Terminal 5 spreads east toward the third runway.
The Singapore Strait lies just to the south and the Johor Strait to the north, so arrivals and departures on both ends are over water within a minute of the runway.
How the flow works
The monsoons set the direction. During the north-east monsoon, from November to March, aircraft land on the 02s from over the strait to the south and depart northwards; in the south-west monsoon they arrive from the north over Johor and depart to the south. With three runways, one is normally dedicated to arrivals, one to departures and the third shared, and the assignments move through the day.
Tropical thunderstorms build most afternoons and evenings; when one sits over the field the sky icon on the card turns to lightning and arrivals hold over the sea until it passes.
What to watch for
Singapore Airlines' A350s, 777s and A380s line up all day, with Scoot's 787s and A320s alongside and every major carrier in Asia, Europe, the Gulf and Australia calling in. The pattern follows the time zones: a wave of long-haul arrivals from Europe in the early morning, the Australian flights around dawn and dusk, and the departures for Europe bunched late in the evening, so the small hours are busier than the afternoon.
The ground picture is unusually complete here: Changi's receiver coverage catches aircraft on the taxiways and at the gates, so the miniature shows the whole choreography from touchdown to stand.
More airports
- LAXLos Angeles International AirportFour parallel runways beside the Pacific, and the busiest airport on the US west coast.
- ORDChicago O'Hare International AirportEight runways, two giant hubs, and weather that keeps everyone on their toes.
- ATLHartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International AirportThe busiest airport on Earth: five parallel runways and an arrival every minute.
- DXBDubai International AirportA380s all day at the busiest international hub in the world.
- LHRLondon Heathrow AirportTwo runways running flat out, Terminal 5 at the west end.
- JFKJohn F. Kennedy International AirportCrossing runway pairs on Jamaica Bay, the AirTrain circling the terminals.
- SANSan Diego International AirportOne runway between the bay and downtown, and the steepest approach in the country.
- AMSAmsterdam Airport SchipholSix runways four metres below sea level, and a fifteen-minute taxi to the Polderbaan.
- DFWDallas/Fort Worth International AirportSeven runways on a site the size of Manhattan, Skylink threading the half-moon terminals.
- HNDTokyo Haneda AirportAsia's busiest airport: four runways on reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay, one standing on piers.
- BKKSuvarnabhumi AirportThree parallel runways around one vast terminal on the marsh east of the city.
- GRUSão Paulo/Guarulhos International AirportSouth America's busiest airport: two parallel runways on the plateau north-east of the biggest city in the hemisphere.
- SYDSydney Kingsford Smith AirportAustralia's busiest airport: two parallel runways reaching out into Botany Bay, and a third across them.
- SINSingapore Changi AirportThree parallel runways on reclaimed land at the eastern tip of the island, and the best-run hub in the world.
- HKGHong Kong International AirportThree parallel runways on an island built for the purpose, between the sea and the mountains of Lantau.