Published: Saturday May 28, 2011 MYT 12:41:00 PM
Updated: Saturday May 28, 2011 MYT 2:19:41 PMPM: New air force base in Sendayan to replace Sg Besi base
GEMAS: A new air force base will be built in Sendayan in Negri Sembilan, to replace the Sg Besi base in Kuala Lumpur.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the details of the project would be announced soon.
He was speaking to reporters after launching the community rehabilitation centre here on Saturday.
Sendayan is 12km from Seremban.
In June, last year, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi confirmed that the air base would be closed to make way for the “Greater KL” development project as laid out in the 10th Malaysia Plan.
However, the high cost of a relocation, estimated to cost several hundred millions of ringgit, if not more, has been a major sticking point.
Apart from Royal Malaysian Air Force and the police air wing, the air unit of the Fire and Rescue Deparment (Bomba) also operates from the airport, as well as the Royal Selangor Flying Club with its fleet of three Cessna aircraft and a Robinson R44 Raven helicopter.
The Aerospace Medical Institute and the RMAF museum are also located there.
The Sungai Besi Airport is the country's first international airport.
The 162-hectare airport, also known as Simpang, served as the main air link from 1952 to 1965, before Subang Airport was opened.
Sungai Besi Airport was originally used as an airstrip in the 1930s but was turned into an airport after World War 2.
5 comments:
The first question that comes to my mind is whether this new base will have a longer runway than the present one at Sungei Besi and whether it will have more aircraft shelters.
Also, lets hope that the contractor does not copmpromise on the built quality of the new base.
And lets hope that the new RMAF museum will have enough indoor space to house the aircraft that are currently in the open.
Unfortunately in another news article reporting on a Press Conference by the Air Force Chief, he stated that the new airbase will be only a service facility with no dedicated runaway as it interferes with the civilian traffic out of KLIA.
In that's the case, what's in it for the RMAF - it will have one less airfield. It also remains to be seen where the air defence centre, the Nuri squadron and the PDRM Air Wing will be moved to.
It's such a waste considering that the Police has invested a lot for their Air Wing station. If i'm not mistaken, they have expand their complex couple of years ago in order to allow their new Beechcraft to be operated there.
BTW, isn't the RMAF Musuem was just having its building being renovated??
Does anyone have any information about the Light Attack Squadron that operated the PC-7, in green with a sharks mouth motif, at Kuantan in the 1980's?
1. When was it formed?
2. How many PC-7s were operated by this unit?
3. Were the PC-7s fitted with gun pods and rockets?
Also, does anyone have the serial of the S-61A that was downed at Gubir? And did the RMN ever have land operated Bofors L/70s for AA defence?
Than you.
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