On April 30, Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) overcame the covid-caused inconvenience in communication and officially signed the Implementation Procedures for Maintenance Cooperation between Civil Aviation Administration of China and Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (Implementation Procedures). This Implementation Procedures is an implementation document under the framework of the Technical Arrangements on Aviation Maintenance Cooperation between Civil Aviation Administration of China and Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (Technical Arrangements) that defines the operation procedures in detail and provides guidance for aviation maintenance companies of China and Singapore to apply for maintenance permit from the civil aviation authority of the other state.

By far, there are 43 Singaporean maintenance companies having obtained CAAC maintenance permit, and 26 the other way around, with their scope of business covering fuselage, engine and parts among others. According to the Implementation Procedures, aviation maintenance companies of China and Singapore could directly file application with the civil aviation authority of the other state and go through a supplementary paper review procedure to obtain maintenance permit, without any site reviews required.

Such cooperation between China and Singapore would not only help to reduce costs generated from repeated review by different authorities for aviation maintenance companies, but also save safety regulation resources for the two governments, in addition to easing the difficulties in company growth and government regulation due to the troubled traffic as the COVID-19 pandemic is still spreading across the globe.

As the Implementation Procedures imply, civil aviation authorities of China and Singapore will hold exchange meetings every year on a regular basis, to discuss matters that would support development of the maintenance sector and improve efficiency of safety regulation, so as to jointly promote quality development of the civil aviation maintenance sector in China and Singapore.