SINGAPORE: There will be a new chairman at the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) from Jul 1.

Edmund Cheng Wai Wing will be appointed to the position, taking over from Lee Hsien Yang, said the Ministry of Transport (MOT) in a news release on Thursday (Jun 21).



Mr Lee will step down on Jun 30 after nine years at the helm.

Mr Cheng has been the deputy chairman for CAAS since Dec 1, 2016. He is also currently the deputy chairman of Wing Tai Holdings and the chairman of Mapletree Investments and the Singapore Art Museum.

Previously, Mr Cheng also served as chairman of SATS, the Singapore Tourism Board and the National Arts Council.

"Mr Cheng’s strong private and public sector board experience will greatly benefit CAAS’ mission to grow a safe, vibrant air hub and civil aviation system," said MOT.



On Mr Lee, the ministry said he played an "instrumental role" in the development of Singapore as an aviation hub, and a Centre of Excellence in Air Traffic Management.



Today, more than 7,200 flights per week connect Singapore to 400 cities worldwide. Passenger and airfreight traffic have grown by 65 per cent and 15 per cent respectively since 2008. Airfreight throughput crossed the two million-tonne mark for the first time, reaching 2.13 million tonnes in 2017.



"The Ministry of Transport would like to put on record its appreciation to Mr Lee Hsien Yang for his many years of dedicated and distinguished service to the CAAS," it said in the press release.