Tengah Air Base
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"RAF Tengah" & "Tengah Airfield" redirects here.
| Tengah Air Base 登加空军基地 Pangkalan Udara Tengah |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| IATA: TGA – ICAO: WSAT | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Military | ||
| Owner | Singapore Armed Forces | ||
| Operator | Republic of Singapore Air Force | ||
| Location | Tengah, Singapore | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 15 m / 50 ft | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| m | ft | ||
| 01/19 | 688 | 2,258 | Asphalt |
| 18/36 | 2,743 | 8,999 | Asphalt |
| 18R/36L | 352 | 1155 | Grass or Dirt |
Tengah Air Base (IATA: TGA, ICAO: WSAT) is the most important airfield of the Republic of Singapore Air Force. It is home to the RSAF's F-16 Fighting Falcons, E-2C Hawkeyes and a large number of UAVs. The air base goes by the motto of "Always Vigilant".
Prior to Singapore's independence, it was an Royal Air Force station known as RAF Tengah.
Contents |
[edit] RAF Tengah
RAF Tengah was commissioned in 1939. Tengah airfield was the target of Carpet bombing when seventeen Japanese navy bombers conducted the First air raid on Singapore, shortly after the Battle of Malaya began. It was also the first airfield to be captured when Japanese forces invaded Singapore.
After the Japanese capture of Singapore, RAF Tengah came under the control of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force while the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service took over the other two RAF stations of RAF Sembawang and RAF Seletar as Singapore was split into north-south sphere of control. This effectively ensured that the Japanese Army took control of the south, including the administrative hub and population center of Singapore City, while the Japanese Navy took command of the north, which included the Royal Navy dockyard at Sembawang.
During the Malayan Emergency, it housed Avro Lincolns of the Royal Air Force and Royal Australian Air Force which performed bombing missions on communist guerrillas. In 1954 the Royal Air Force was re-equipped with Venom FB4's and Vampire T11's of 60 Squadron and was joined by 14 Squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. In 1958 they were joined by 45 Squadron RAF and 75 Squadron RNZAF, with Canberra B.2. The Royal Australian Air Force retained their Lincolns with No 1(B) Bomber squadron until the end of the emergency.
During the period of Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation, the RAF deployed 74 Squadron with its English Electric Lightning F6s followed by 20 Squadron and its Hawker Hunter fighter aircraft to the air base to help bolster the air defense of Singapore and Peninsula Malaysia against air incursions from P-51 Mustangs of the Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU). In support of this, the base was also used by No. 15 Squadron RAF as a dispersal to rotate its Handley Page Victor B.1A bombers and crews with those based at RAF Butterworth, Malaysia, until the end of the Confrontation.
[edit] Tengah Air Base
It was renamed Tengah Air Base in 1971 when it was handed over to the Singapore Air Defence Command (SADC). And from 1971 to 1976, under the Five Power Defence Arrangement, Tengah housed British, Australian and New Zealand forces. Currently, the air base houses aircraft such as the Grumman E-2C Hawkeyes and the F-16C/D Fighting Falcons. Tengah's reserve storage includes some 100 units of A4-SU Super SkyHawks that are capable of laser-guided bombings and air defence. These were retired in 2005, but kept in reserve storage.
The Flying squadrons are:[1]
- 111 Squadron: operates the Grumman E-2C Hawkeyes;
- 140 Squadron: operates the F-16C/Ds;
- 142 Squadron: operates the A-4SU Super Skyhawks before the squadron was disbanded in 1997;
- 143 Squadron: operates the F-16C/Ds.
- RSAF Black Knights - the official RSAF Aerobatic team and is also the formation insignia of Tengah Air Base.
The Support Squadrons are:
- Air Logistics Squadron (ALS)
- Field Defence Squadron (FDS)
- Flying Support Squadron
- Airfield Maintenance Squadron (AMS)
[edit] Photo Gallery
 RAF Tengah Crest Badge |
 The first operation of No. 1 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force from Tengah, Singapore, August 1950. |
 An Avro Lincoln bomber of No 1(B) Bomber squadron dropping 500 pound bombs on Communist targets during the Malayan Emergency. |
 Members of 45 Squadron posing for the camera in front of a Bristol Brigand at RAF Tengah, Singapore in 1950. |
 (Circa 1970) Line up of aircraft at RAF Tengah during Exercise Bersatu Padu.[2] English Electric Lightning fighters, English Electric Canberra, Handley Page Victor, Avro Vulcan bombers and F-4E Phantom IIs fighter-bombers (from left to right respectively). |
 An English Electric Lightning F6 similar to those operated by No. 74 Squadron RAF from RAF Tengah. |
 The RSAF Black Knights training near the airstrip of Pulau Sudong (visible in the mid left distance). © MINDEF |
 The RSAF Black Knights training over Pulau Sudong. © MINDEF |
 RSAF Black Knights 2008 formation flight over Sentosa Island, Singapore. © MINDEF |
 RSAF F-16D prepares for flight. |
 RSAF 111Sqn's E-2C Hawkeye. |
[edit] See also
- Battle of Singapore
- Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation
- Far East Air Force (Royal Air Force)
- List of RAF stations
- Republic of Singapore Air Force
- RSAF Black Knights
[edit] References
- ^ Squadrons of Tengah Air Base. MINDEF.
- ^ 1970 - Exercise Bersatu Padu. MINDEF.
[edit] External links
- History of RAF
- Airport information for WSAT at World Aero Data
- RSAF web page on Tengah Air Base
- Memories of Singapore - RAF Tengah
|
|||||
|
|||||||
 |
This Singapore location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 |
This RAF article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
