The Singapore Air Force past, present and future

As of second official day comes to an end we wanted to highlight our experiences today.  The day started like most of our mornings will, we gather as a large group for Breakfast, today’s menu included food more noticeable to the western pallet, eggs, hot dogs a fresh fruit salad and bread with a choice of Raspberry, Blueberry or my favorite Natella !  Each morning and evening snack (which we got after we blogged last night) we also are treated to what is becoming one of my favorite drinks here in Singapore, a variation of hot chocolate.  Only I would enjoy multiple cups of HOT Chocolate in the early morning 80+ degree heat!  

Our day today took us to Paya Lebar Air Base where we had an opportunity to explore how the Singapore Air Fore Pilots maintain their proficiency with their flight simulators.  Our briefing was conducted by the Commander of the Simulator Squadron Call-sign “Cougar” It was impressive to learn a bit more about the intense training the RSAF Pilots endure and continue both in and out of the cockpit.  Our highlight of the morning included an opportunity to get inside the F-5 and F-16 simulators.  Our very own, Janice Watson had the controls on the F-5 as we enjoyed a demonstration on how the simulator worked including an opportunity to see Air Refueling, Air to Air Combat, Air to Ground Combat and a smooth landing.  Over at the F-16 simulator we had a chance to witness a RSAF Pilot and Weapons System Operator hone their skills on a routine simulator training exercise. 

I know that Capt Reed published a synopsis of Singapore but to further expand upon it and to give you a visual, while flying in an F-16 you can cover the entire country in just about 30 Seconds! 

Following our visit to the simulators we gathered for a box lunch at the Paya Lebar Air Base Officers Dining room where had an opportunity to continue to get to know each other and continue to sample some local cuisine, simple yet delicious coconut rice with hot sauce, a few vegetables and a chicken wing.  I though it most fitting to snap a few photos (we were given permission) of the group so you can see who makes up the Singapore IACE 2008 Delegation

Dining Hall

Seabass and the Indian Delegation

Male Cadets

The Ladies of Singapore 2008

Air Force Museum

The UK Group

Escort Officers

After lunch we had a chance to learn about the past, present and future of the Singapore Air Force at their museum.  It stuck me as being pretty fascinating for such a small country the amount of resources and current technology that is deployed to this primarily humanitarian rather than defensive or offensive responding country.  

This evening after dinner, we are off to learn how to operate the local transportation system so that we can begin to explore the country a bit on our own (in small groups of course, Mom!)  We will catch up with all of you tomorrow; we have another day of flying as well as some official visits to the visiting countries embassies before we are off to explore the downtown nightlife. 

Until tomorrow,

-Joe

P.S. Feel free to leave us a comment if you have any questions about our activities or the country, we will try our best to answer them in the upcoming blog posts. 

 
 

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