Former Air Force chief Ng Chee Khern to take over as chairman of CAAS from Aug 1
Mr Ng will take over from Mr Edmund Cheng, who has served as CAAS chairman since 2018.
Mr Ng Chee Khern (left) will succeed Mr Edmund Cheng (right) as chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore’s board from Aug 1, 2026. (Photos: Ministry of Transport)
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SINGAPORE: After more than nine years on the board of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), including overseeing Singapore’s aviation sector through the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Edmund Cheng will step down as its chairman, with Mr Ng Chee Khern set to take over from Aug 1.
Mr Ng was formerly Chief of Air Force from 2006 to 2009 and was the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Manpower from 2022 to 2025.
In a statement on Wednesday (Jul 15), the Ministry of Transport (MOT) said that Mr Ng’s extensive leadership experience – he has also been the deputy chairman of CAAS since Jan 1 – will greatly benefit the authority in its work to “strengthen Singapore’s position as a global aviation hub”.
Mr Ng began his career as a pilot in the Republic of Singapore Air Force in 1984 and was awarded the Public Administration Medal (Gold) in 2016.
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He has also held key appointments in the Ministry of Health, as well as the Smart Nation and Digital Government Group in the Prime Minister’s Office.
He is now the director and chief executive officer of the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and a member of its board of trustees,
CONTRIBUTIONS TO CAAS
Since July 2018, Mr Cheng has served as chairman of CAAS, having been its deputy chairman from December 2016.
He was chairman of ground-handling company SATS from 2003 to 2016, as well as chairman of the Singapore Tourism Board from 1993 to 2001.
Under Mr Cheng’s leadership, CAAS worked on several long-term projects aimed at strengthening Singapore as an aviation hub, including the development of the upcoming Changi Airport Terminal 5, the Changi East Industrial Zone and the Changi East Urban District. It also set up new organisations such as the Asia Pacific Sustainable Aviation Centre and the Singapore Sustainable Aviation Fuel Company.
During his tenure, CAAS steered Singapore’s aviation sector through the pandemic, rebuilding it to handle a record high of nearly 70 million passenger movements and more than two million tonnes of air cargo in 2025, MOT said.
In 2025, the authority announced a S$1 billion (US$780 million) commitment to support initiatives in connectivity, technology, infrastructure and manpower.
MOT also said that under Mr Cheng, CAAS has built new capabilities to make Singapore’s aviation hub a more sustainable and technology-enabled one, through the launch of the Air Transport Industry Transformation Map in 2023 and the launch of the Singapore Sustainable Air Hub Blueprint in 2024.
Thanking Mr Cheng for his “distinguished service”, MOT and CAAS said that they deeply appreciate his “invaluable contributions” to the authority and Singapore’s aviation sector.
Source: CNA/co(nh)
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