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| Paya Lebar Airbase | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lapangan Terbang Paya Lebar 巴耶利峇空軍基地 பாயா லெபார் விமான தளம் | |||||||
| Paya Lebar,Singapore in Singapore | |||||||
 The control tower and terminal building in 1971 | |||||||
| Site information | |||||||
| Type | Military airbase | ||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||
| Operator | Republic of Singapore Air Force | ||||||
| Controlled by | Republic of Singapore Air Force | ||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
 | |||||||
.svg)  Paya Lebar Airbase Location in Singapore | |||||||
| Coordinates | 01°21′37″N103°54′34″E / 1.36028°N 103.90944°E /1.36028; 103.90944 | ||||||
| Site history | |||||||
| Built | 1954 (1954) (as Singapore International Airport) | ||||||
| In use | 1954 – present | ||||||
| Fate | Decommissioned by 2030s | ||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: QPG,ICAO: WSAP | ||||||
| |||||||
| Source:DAFIF[1][2] | |||||||
ThePaya Lebar Air Base (IATA:QPG,ICAO:WSAP) is amilitary airbase of theRepublic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) in Singapore located at Airport Road inPaya Lebar, in theeastern region of Singapore. The airbase goes by the motto ofStrength Through Readiness.
It was originally built in 1954 asSingapore International Airport to replaceKallang Airport; control of the airport was transferred to RSAF in 1980 when it was renamed Paya Lebar Air Base, following the relocation of the civilian airport toChangi Airport.
Under theUrban Redevelopment Authority (URA)'s Master Plan, Paya Lebar Air Base is scheduled to be decommissioned by around 2030 to make way for residential and commercial developments as anew town, with the RSAF relocating to otherairbases throughout the country such as atChangi andTengah, which will be expanded throughout the 2020s.[3][4]
The airport was built from 1952 to 1955, and opened on 20 August that year by theSecretary of State for the Colonies,Alan Lennox-Boyd.[5] The architect for the project was J. J. Bryan, a public works engineer with experience constructing airports in other parts of Asia.[6]
It was one of the two hubs forMalayan Airways at this time, and the airline had its first flight outside Southeast Asia in 1958, using aDC-4 plane leased fromQantas, flying to Hong Kong. Turboprops were introduced over the next few years, and the name was changed to Malaysian Airways.
In 1962, a joint RAF/Singapore civil Air Traffic Control service was formed to provide Military cover for Air Defence. During that time Britannia aircraft of British Eagle provided transport for the British military. Comet 4C's were common traffic and the new VC10 arrived reducing flight time, rather than the 24hrs-with stops- of the Britannia.
In 1966, the company focused more on Singapore, buyingBoeing 707s, headquartering itself in that country, and renaming itself Malaysia-Singapore Airlines – with a notable fluorescent yellow livery. Its primary hub became Paya Lebar, and services began to reach out further into North Asia.
From 1979 to 1980, British Airways, in conjunction with Singapore Airlines, began supersonicConcorde services from London'sHeathrow Airport, to Paya Lebar Singapore.
Malaysia-Singapore Airlines was dissolved in 1972, with the airline splitting into two;Malaysia Airlines andSingapore Airlines were formed – the latter keeping all the 707s; and Singapore Airlines remaining at Paya Lebar. Passenger numbers rose from 1.7 million to 4 million between 1970 and 1975. The airport was constrained by housing estates and although some work was done to keep it operational in the meantime, construction began on the new airport in 1975 and opened in 1981. Paya Lebar then closed to civil traffic, theIATA airport code of SIN and theICAO airport code of WSSS were transferred toChangi Airport.
Singapore International Airport began to be gradually converted into a military air-force base from late 1967 onwards. During that year, anAir Movement Centre was constructed to handle passengers and cargo arriving onRepublic of Singapore Air Force, andMinistry of Defencecharter flights and foreignmilitary aircraft. The original terminal building (painted green), maintenance hangar and control tower are retained. Access to terminal and hangars are off-limits closed off by a wired fence. It became a completemilitaryairbase in 1981 whenSingapore Changi Airport was opened and was subsequently renamed as Paya Lebar Air Base (PLAB) in the same year.
The air base currently houses aircraft such as theC-130 Hercules[7] and two squadrons of F-15SG Strike Eagles.
The flying squadrons are:
The support squadrons are:
Former squadrons based here are:
Under Singapore's permission, the Paya Lebar Airbase is also used by various flying units ofUnited States Air Force andUnited States Navy (includingUnited States Marine Corps Aviation) as a strategic refuelling stopover andstaging post/transit point; the base is also used permanently by the497th Combat Training Squadron for other flight operations since 31 October 1991.[9]
Paya Lebar Air Base also plays host to USAF VIP aircraft as well, with regular visits byAir Force One, such as during PresidentGeorge W. Bush's two visits to Singapore in October 2003[10] and November 2006.[11]
Air Force Two carrying Vice-PresidentDick Cheney also made a refuelling stop and underwent minor repairs en route from Australia in 2007.[12]
The USAF Boeing 747-200E-4B regularly lands at the base when the U.S. Secretary of Defense visits Singapore, as does theBoeing 757 C-32A that carries the Secretary of State.
On 14 November 2009, Air Force One carrying PresidentBarack Obama landed at Paya Lebar Air Base to attend theAPEC Singapore 2009 Summit.[13]
On 10 June 2018, PresidentDonald Trump landed at the airbase in theBoeing VC-25A for the2018 North Korea–United States summit. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un landed at Changi Airport instead, on a charteredAir ChinaBoeing 747.
On 22 August 2021,Air Force Two carrying Vice-PresidentKamala Harris arrived at the airbase for an official visit.[14]
PLAB was chosen to hostAir Force One for the 12 June2018 North Korea–United States summit between PresidentDonald Trump andChairmanKim Jong-un.[15][16][17] Although early media reports speculated that Kim'sIlyushin Il-62 would land at PLAB, his plane landed atSingapore Changi Airport instead.[18]
On 6 June 2018, Singapore's aviation authorities announced temporary airspace restrictions that were put in place for parts of 11–13 June. Aircraft arriving atSingapore Changi Airport were required to reduce speed with some restrictions on runway use. Aviators were also informed to keep a distance from Paya Lebar Air Base.[19][20] After the summit, Trump and Air Force One left Singapore via PLAB at 6:30 pm Singapore Time.[21]
The airbase is expected to be decommissioned from 2030.[22] Throughout the 2020s, expansion works are currently ongoing atTengah Air Base andChangi Air Base to prepare for the eventual relocation of RSAF's assets after the closure of the airbase.[23]
With the closure of the airbase, height restrictions imposed at Singapore's central business district (CBD) which limits buildings to a maximum height of 280 meters unless special permissions are granted will be lifted, and the airbase's area will be redeveloped into anew town with residential housing projects, offices, factories, and parks.[24][25] Parts of the old airbase (e.g. runway) will also be integrated to this new town to conserve its heritage, with parks and museums.[26]
Being Singapore's first major international airport, the old passenger terminal building and control tower still stands, though they now house air force units and are off-limits to the public. Nevertheless, much of the interior still remains intact and is almost completely preserved from the time it was first built.[27] The road which used to lead to the old passenger terminal is also still known as Airport Road.
The RSAF maintains theAir Force Museum, which is open to the public and showcases the air force's history and capabilities. The museum is located at 400 Airport Road, Singapore 534234 beside the airbase. It went through an upgrade and update of the exhibits in 2015.
| External images | |
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 Overflight photo 1 of Paya Lebar Airport, 1962 | |
| Overflight photo 2 of Paya Lebar Airport, 1962 | |
| Overflight photo 3 of Paya Lebar Airport, 1962 |
| International | |
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| National | |
