SATS Security Services Pte Ltd is a subsidiary of SATS Ltd, providing security services for aviation-related activities at Singapore Changi Airport. It provides armed auxiliary police officers for mainly airline clients as an auxiliary police force under the Police Force Act 2004. SATS also provides aviation security to airlines at Changi Airport in Singapore especially those managed by it parent ground handler SATS Ltd., although they also provide security to SATS-related facilities.
History
In 1965, SATS Security Services originally started as the Malayan Airways Security Department. Its existence back then was to meet the security and aviation needs of its aircraft and to a certain extent, the Paya Lebar Airport. The MASD was restricted within the confines of Paya Lebar Airport and they do not have the powers of regular police officers. SATS competed with the Changi International Airport Services when it was established in 1990. When Malayan Airways was renamed to Malaysian Singapore Airlines, its Security Department was renamed MSA Police in 1967. In 1972, Singapore Airlines came into being, after parting ways with MSA becoming Malaysia Airlines System. MSA police was renamed SIA Auxiliary Police. A year later, SATS became a fully owned subsidiary of SIA and SIA Auxiliary Police became SATS Security Services, incorporating the former SIA Auxiliary Police Force in it. On 24 April 1985, three active SATS officers and one retired SATS officers were involved in breaking into an airport office in Changi back in August 1984. On 1 November 2004, the company was awarded an extension for third party war risk liability insurance by the Singaporean government through the Ministry of Transportation. This was to cover any problems between what commercial insurers are currently prepared to offer and what was available commercially before the worldwide cancellation of such cover in September 2001. In November 2015, Resorts World Sentosa and SSS were involved in a lawsuit involving an Australian lawyer and permanent resident Adesh Kumar Goel in a dispute in April 2012 for supposedly taking casino chips. The Supreme Court of Singapore mentioned in a 2 October 2018 statement that RWS management had no legal basis to detain Mr. Goel and both RWS and SSS officers were liable for wrongful imprisonment and assault and battery. In March 2017, a SATS customer services officer flagged a suspicious man, who was referred to SATS officers for further screening, after she saw that the traveler was going to make several stops according to his itinerary and couldn't give concrete answers. In December 2017, a SATS officer arrested a SATS cabin services member for stealing three liquor bottles, found taped on his body to avoid being detected. In October 2018, SATS announced that all of its officers working at Changi Airport will be deployed with body cameras. At the same time, it was also announced that a total of SGD$1m would be invested to digitize Changi's security systems to improve its services due to manpower problems. In November 2018, SATS reported that an officer died after he ate spoiled food from Spize's River Valley branch.
Deployments
Some current deployments of armed SATS Security personnel include:
SATS Security had a manpower of 450 officers in 1989; SSS had 760 officers in 1999. By the 1999-2000 fiscal year, 805 officers are employed. As of 2018, 800 officers are employed.
Training
SATS Security personnel who are eligible for further studies, are allowed to study for a diploma/specialist diploma in Aviation Management through SkillsFuture Work-Study Programmes.
Uniforms
Unlike Certis CISCO and AETOS auxiliary police, the uniform design of SATS Auxiliary Police closely resemble the Singapore Police Force ; with the exception of the baby blue top and metallic cap and collar badges. This is done to distinguish differences from uniforms worn by officers from the SPF.
Awards
SSS received the Outstanding Achievement in Collaboration in Education & Training award from the Australian Business/Higher Education RoundTable alongside Edith Cowan University for developing a Security and Police Studies Diploma Programme and scholarship funds for it.
