Man arrested at Singapore airport for buying plane ticket so he could accompany wife to gate

‘Misusing’ boarding pass can result in up to two years in prison

A man has been arrested at Singapore airport after he bought a plane ticket just so he could accompany his wife to the gate.

The practice of purchasing a flight you don’t intend to use just to access the airside section of the airport terminal is prohibited in Singapore.

Singapore Police Force shared a picture on Facebook of a sign saying, “Warning: It is an arrestable offence to enter the transit area if you do not intend to travel, even if you have a boarding pass.”

The picture is accompanied by a caption announcing that a 27-year-old man had been arrested for “misusing his boarding pass” at the transit area of Singapore Changi Airport on 25 August.

It reads: “Investigations revealed that the man had entered the transit area to send off his wife. He had no intention to depart Singapore.

“Since January 2019, the police have arrested 33 persons for the misuse of boarding passes.”

The post goes on to say that the transit areas of Changi Airport are “Protected Places”, and that travellers who enter them with a boarding pass “should only be there for the purpose of travelling to their next destinations”.

People who buy a boarding pass simply to access these areas with no intention of flying can be prosecuted under the Infrastructure Protection Act.

“The offender may be prosecuted in Court and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or both,” the post finishes.

It follows the story of a 13-year-old boy who managed to board a flight at Heathrow airport without a ticket.

The unaccompanied minor was discovered onboard a British Airways flight to Los Angeles on 14 July after cabin crew asked to see his boarding pass.

When it became clear that he did not have the correct travel documentation, the entire flight was de-planed and passengers had to go through security again.

It was unclear how the boy had managed to get so far undetected.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed the child was identified by cabin crew during the pre-flight check and that he did not have a ticket or any travel documents.