Confusion as Budget Terminal hands over operations

There was slight confusion as Singapore's Budget Terminal closed early this morning, and handed over operations to Changi Airport's Terminal Two. 

Some were wrongly informed that their flight would depart from Terminal Two, even before the Budget Terminal closed. 

The miscommunication was a bump on the runway for an otherwise smooth transition of low-cost carriers from one complex to another. 

Sarah Lee sent her maid, who was flying to Manila, to Terminal Two. 

But the aircraft was actually departing from the Budget Terminal. 

The airline, Cebu Pacific, had wrongly indicated in the flight itinerary that Terminal Two was where the plane would takeoff. 

"They should put a tape over the Cebu air, for three hours or four hours, so that we won't be going there and they should have informed the passengers!" 

Poh Li San, who oversees the Budget Terminal's operations, said staff stepped in to aid lost travellers. 

"We actually have tried our best to bring in passengers who actually mistakenly went to Terminal Two and make sure that they are able to catch the same flight to Manila from Budget Terminal." 

With low-cost flights shifted to Terminal Two, adjustments have been made to accommodate an expected extra five million yearly passengers from the Budget Terminal. 

Taxi bays have increased from 12 to 15. 

And check-in counters dedicated to budget carriers like Tiger Airways. 

Koay Peng Yen is the budget carrier's Group Chief Executive. 

"There'll be more facilities, more amenities, more shopping, more retail, that's available for our passengers." 

The first budget flight landed at Terminal 2 from Perth at 3am, marking the end of the Budget Terminal era.

-By Dylan Loh