The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) signed an enhanced cooperation agreement on the safety oversight of Airbus 380 with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) yesterday.

Under this agreement, the two parties will exchange information and analyses on airworthiness and flight operations matters of theA380, according to a statement by CAAS.

Both sides will also collaborate to address issues arising from the A380 operations.

This will enable close monitoring and safety oversight of the A380 fleet in service, said the statement.

The agreement was signed by EASA's executive director Patrick Goudou, and CAAS' director-general and chief executive officer LimKim Choon.

Lim said, "Singapore, being the first to put the A380 into commercial service, could share its operational experience with EASA, and at the same time, benefit from the wealth of expertise in EASA on A380 design and maintenance capabilities."

Singapore Airlines, the national carrier, currently has two A380s in service on the Singapore-Sydney route, and will fly its third A380 on the Singapore-London route from next month.