Misplaced Pages

#229770

83-578: The Tengah Air Base ( IATA : TGA , ICAO : WSAT ) is a military airbase of the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) located in the Western Water Catchment , in the western part of Singapore . The air base is the most important airfield of the RSAF as it houses the majority of the RSAF's fixed-wing frontline squadrons, home to all of RSAF's Airborne early warning and control (AEWC) assets, most of

166-428: A ultra high frequency (UHF) radio, an Identification friend or foe (IFF) transponder and a SAAB BT-9K ballistic computer that was used in conjunction with ground attack ordnance. The de Havilland Venom was a jet-propelled combat aircraft, featuring a distinctive twin-boom tail and composite wood/metal structure. Originally developed as a ground-attack fighter, it served as an interceptor as well. It possessed

249-514: A F16 crashed shortly after take off, the pilot ejected with minor injuries. The Flying Squadrons based in Tengah Air Base are: The Flying Squadrons based in Tengah Air Base are: The Support Squadrons based in Tengah Air Base are: The RSAF regularly conducts Exercise Torrent which converts the neighboring Lim Chu Kang road into an alternative runway since its inception in April 1986. Its purpose

332-428: A dedicated aerial reconnaissance variant of the aircraft, which were outfitted with specially modified underwing fuel tanks that had automated cameras installed in the forward section. Swiss Venoms were also subject to multiple improvement and upgrade programmes, including life extension modifications, the addition of ultra high frequency (UHF) radio sets, and an improved license-built bombsight . In 1962, all of

415-516: A development of the Vampire, furnished with a thinner wing and a more powerful engine, to serve as a high altitude fighter, designated as the 'Vampire FB 8' ("fighter bomber Mark 8"). The design gradually shifted, with company designation DH 112, in order to fulfill Air Ministry requirement OR.277, defined in Specification F.15/49 , which sought a fast, manoeuvrable and capable fighter-bomber to replace

498-444: A favourable rate of climb and other positive characteristics that lent itself well to combat operations, and represented a significant advance over the preceding Vampire. It was a sound ground attack aircraft, possessing good manoeuvrability, steadiness, endurance, handling, and a range of compatible stores. The Venom's manoeuvrability even gave it an edge against many dogfighters of the era, although its limited top speed proved to be

581-557: A flight of four Venoms conducted a 10,000 flight from RAF Habbaniya , Iraq to Wingfield Aerodrome , South Africa and back; while on the return leg of this journey, a speed record was set on the Cape Town - Pretoria route, covering the 807-mile distance in one hour and 23 minutes. On 6 May 1953, the first of the Venom night fighters was delivered to the RAF. From 1955 onwards, an improved model of

664-589: A more powerful de Havilland Ghost 103 turbojet engine, making the aircraft more suitable for high altitude flight. Both the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Royal Navy took interest in the type; in order to suit the needs of the latter, a specialised derivative, the Sea Venom , was produced; it was a navalised model of the aircraft that was suitable for carrier operations. A dedicated model for aerial reconnaissance

747-550: A new airport is built, replacing the old one, leaving the city's new "major" airport (or the only remaining airport) code to no longer correspond with the city's name. The original airport in Nashville, Tennessee, was built in 1936 as part of the Works Progress Administration and called Berry Field with the designation, BNA. A new facility known as Nashville International Airport was built in 1987 but still uses BNA. This

830-559: A number of Sea Venom FAW.53s have also survived. Venezuela has the only complete surviving British-built single-seat Venom. The Polish Aviation Museum (PAL) has a British-built Sea Venom, which was used for experiments at de Havilland and the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment , and then was transferred to the Imperial War Museum, which sold it to the PAL in 2013. Although

913-625: A replacement for the Vampire NF 10. For this variant, the fuselage was redesigned to accommodate a two-man crew, (pilot and navigator/radar operator), seated in a side-by-side configuration, and an aircraft interception radar installed in the extended nose. During late 1953, the Venom NF.2 entered squadron service, after being delayed to resolve minor problems that had been discovered. Specifically, preliminary handling trials had revealed unsatisfactory performance in poor weather conditions. The Venom NF.2

SECTION 10

#1732870008230

996-596: A single RAF Venom was lost throughout the crisis. From 1956 onwards, Middle Eastern-based RAF squadrons progressively received the improved Venom FB 4. Starting in 1956, RAF Venoms were deployed during the Aden Emergency , where they were used in support of counterinsurgency operations against terrorists and rebel tribesmen in Aden and Oman . In 1957, British RAF Venoms participated heavily during Jebel Akhdar War in Oman to expand

1079-465: A smooth-topped expanse of rubber plantation stretched away to misty blue hills . . . You could picture officers and guests out there on mess nights chatting under the Southern Cross . . . the strains of a waltz coming from the dance band in the spacious lounge brilliantly lit and aswirl in colour. Now, a month later and into war, all that was gone forever. Many of the windows were now empty of glass, so

1162-445: A weakness in this role. Early issues, such as a rear spar weakness and flash fires due to the ingestion of vented fuel by the engine air intakes under some conditions, were quickly identified and overcome. The Venom FB 1 was armed with four nose-mounted 20 mm (.79 in) Hispano Mk V autocannon and could carry either two 1,000 lb (approx 450 kg) bombs or eight RP-3 "60 lb" air-to-ground rocket projectiles –

1245-499: Is GSN and its IATA code is SPN, and some coincide with IATA codes of non-U.S. airports. Canada's unusual codes—which bear little to no similarity with any conventional abbreviation to the city's name—such as YUL in Montréal , and YYZ in Toronto , originated from the two-letter codes used to identify weather reporting stations in the 1930s. The letters preceding the two-letter code follow

1328-485: Is a British post-war single-engined jet aircraft developed and manufactured by the de Havilland Aircraft Company . Much of its design was derived from the de Havilland Vampire , the firm's first jet-powered combat aircraft; it was initially referred to as the Vampire FB 8 prior to the adoption of the Venom name. The Venom was developed during the late 1940s to fulfil Air Ministry Specification F.15/49 , under which

1411-600: Is available. However, many railway administrations have their own list of codes for their stations, such as the list of Amtrak station codes . Airport codes arose out of the convenience that the practice brought pilots for location identification in the 1930s. Initially, pilots in the United States used the two-letter code from the National Weather Service (NWS) for identifying cities. This system became unmanageable for cities and towns without an NWS identifier, and

1494-518: Is different from the name in English, yet the airport code represents only the English name. Examples include: Due to scarcity of codes, some airports are given codes with letters not found in their names: The use of 'X' as a filler letter is a practice to create three-letter identifiers when more straightforward options were unavailable: Some airports in the United States retained their NWS ( National Weather Service ) codes and simply appended an X at

1577-513: Is in conjunction to rules aimed to avoid confusion that seem to apply in the United States, which state that "the first and second letters or second and third letters of an identifier may not be duplicated with less than 200 nautical miles separation." Thus, Washington, D.C. area's three airports all have radically different codes: IAD for Washington–Dulles , DCA for Washington–Reagan (District of Columbia Airport), and BWI for Baltimore (Baltimore–Washington International, formerly BAL). Since HOU

1660-532: Is not followed outside the United States: In addition, since three letter codes starting with Q are widely used in radio communication, cities whose name begins with "Q" also had to find alternate codes, as in the case of: IATA codes should not be confused with the FAA identifiers of U.S. airports. Most FAA identifiers agree with the corresponding IATA codes, but some do not, such as Saipan , whose FAA identifier

1743-526: Is to demonstrate the RSAF capability of generating air power in the shortest time from public roads. The latest and seventh edition was held from the 10 to 13 November 2016. To accommodate the relocation of all RSAF assets and equipment from Paya Lebar Air Base, Tengah Air Base will be expanded by acquiring 50,000 graves in the Choa Chu Kang Cemetery and 80 neighbouring farms/agricultural businesses. Military training areas will be rationalised, such as

SECTION 20

#1732870008230

1826-416: Is used for William P. Hobby Airport , the new Houston–Intercontinental became IAH. The code BKK was originally assigned to Bangkok–Don Mueang and was later transferred to Suvarnabhumi Airport , while the former adopted DMK. The code ISK was originally assigned to Gandhinagar Airport (Nashik's old airport) and later on transferred to Ozar Airport (Nashik's current airport). Shanghai–Hongqiao retained

1909-561: The Canadian transcontinental railroads were built, each station was assigned its own two-letter Morse code : When the Canadian government established airports, it used the existing railway codes for them as well. If the airport had a weather station, authorities added a "Y" to the front of the code, meaning "Yes" to indicate it had a weather station or some other letter to indicate it did not. When international codes were created in cooperation with

1992-564: The F-16C/D Fighting Falcons and many UAVs . The airfield goes by the motto of Always Vigilant , which is supported by its main motif, a black knight chess piece symbolising the aircraft's operational readiness in Tengah. The sword represents war's heraldic sword of destruction, while the state is depicted by the castle. Prior to Singapore's independence, it was a flying Royal Air Force station known as RAF Tengah . RAF Tengah

2075-452: The Middle East , Africa , and Asia . During September 1952, the Venom participated in its first NATO training operation, Exercise Mainbrace . In mid-1953, a second Venom wing, consisting of Nos. 14 , 98 and 118 Squadrons, was formed at RAF Fassberg , Lower Saxony ; a third wing, comprising Nos. 16 , 94 , and 145 Squadrons, was also formed at RAF Celle , Lower Saxony, during

2158-413: The Royal Air Force 's (RAF) existing Vampires in that capacity. From the onset, the envisioned role had been intended as an interim fighter-bomber, while the development of aircraft capable of even greater performance had already been anticipated by the service. Although generally similar in appearance to the preceding Vampire, sharing the distinctive twin-boom tail and composite wood/metal structure,

2241-518: The Suez Crisis during late 1956. The type was operated by Nos. 6 , 8 and 249 Squadrons, flying from RAF Akrotiri , Cyprus . The Anglo-French invasion, codenamed Operation Musketeer , took place in response to the nationalisation of the Suez Canal by Egypt 's leader, General Nasser . The air war began on 31 October 1956. The Venoms attacked a variety of military installations on the ground; only

2324-466: The Suez Crisis , the Malayan Emergency , and the Aden Emergency . It was withdrawn from frontline operations by the service in 1962 following the introduction of more capable aircraft. The Venom had also proved to be popular on the export market, having been sold in substantial numbers to Iraq , New Zealand , Sweden , Switzerland and Venezuela . The Swiss Air Force was the final operator to use

2407-429: The trailing edge was straight; a pair of optionally-fitted wing tip tanks were also designed to be fitted without any negative impact on the aircraft's overall combat manoeuvring capability. A single Vampire F 1 had flown with the new Ghost engine in 1947. On 2 September 1949, the first Venom prototype, VV612 , performed its maiden flight at Hatfield, Hertfordshire , piloted by John Derry . In May 1950, following

2490-752: The Javelins of 64 Squadron. On 3 September 1964, an Indonesian Air Force C-130 Hercules crashed into the Straits of Malacca while trying to evade interception by a Javelin FAW.9 of No 60 Squadron. On 30 April 1968, the Gloster Javelins of No 60 Squadron flew their last RAF operational sorties from Tengah and the squadron was disbanded the same day. As a show of force to deter the Indonesian President Sukarno from launching an all-out war during this period,

2573-933: The RAF also deployed a V bomber force detachment to Tengah in the form of Handley Page Victor B.1A bombers from 15 Squadron in August 1963, which was rotated with those dispersed to RAAF Butterworth in Malaysia. The detachment of Victor bombers was replaced in October 1964 by a detachment of Avro Vulcan B.2 bombers from 12 Squadron , these were subsequently pulled back to RAF Cottesmore in December that same year. In August 1965, 9 Squadron resumed RAF's Vulcan bomber detachment to Tengah, followed by 35 Squadron in December 1965, these were in turn replaced by 9 Squadron again in February 1966. After June 1966, 9 Squadron returned to Cottesmore following

Tengah Air Base - Misplaced Pages Continue

2656-503: The RAF. In addition, the construction effort was augmented by numbers of Venom FB.1, FB.4 and NF.51 aircraft that were produced by Fairey Aviation at Manchester (Ringway) Airport . At one point, the production of further Venoms at the Bristol Aeroplane Company 's Filton facility was considered but was ultimately not pursued. During the early 1950s, the prospects for Italian aircraft manufacturer Fiat Aviazione producing

2739-809: The Swiss Air Force. In the UK, a number of Sea Venoms have been preserved, along with examples of the NF 3 and Swiss-built FB.50 and 54. In Sweden, two examples of the NF.51 are preserved. There are many survivors in Switzerland, and other Swiss aircraft are scattered throughout Europe. One such aircraft is preserved in the Israeli Air Force Museum in Hatzerim , although in the colours of the Iraqi Air Force. In Australia,

2822-461: The U.S. For example, several airports in Alaska have scheduled commercial service, such as Stebbins and Nanwalek , which use FAA codes instead of ICAO codes. Thus, neither system completely includes all airports with scheduled service. Some airports are identified in colloquial speech by their IATA code. Examples include LAX and JFK . De Havilland Venom The de Havilland DH 112 Venom

2905-481: The United States, because "Y" was seldom used in the United States, Canada simply used the weather station codes for its airports, changing the "Y" to a "Z" if it conflicted with an airport code already in use. The result is that most major Canadian airport codes start with "Y" followed by two letters in the city's name (for example, YOW for O tta w a , YWG for W innipe g , YYC for C algar y , or YVR for V ancouve r ), whereas other Canadian airports append

2988-649: The Venom NF 3 performed its first flight; it entered operational service with the RAF during June 1955. The final Venom model developed for the RAF was the single-seat FB.4 , which first flew on 29 December 1953. It entered service in 1955 and 250 were built. The FB.4 was powered by a single 4,850 lbf (21.6 kN) thrust de Havilland Ghost 103 engine. It was the first Venom to be fitted with an ejector seat, as well as being furnished with redesigned tail surfaces and hydraulically powered ailerons . The new rudder design prevented excessive yaw and eliminated incidents of rudder locking at low speeds. The FB 4 variant

3071-619: The Venom supported counterinsurgency operations against Communist guerrillas as part of Operation Firedog , the codename for RAF operations in Malaya . By 15 November 1957, the day on which the Venom was withdrawn from combat in the theatre, the type had conducted more than 300 strikes against guerillas. Several Venoms were lent to the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) for use during the same conflict, being operated by No. 14 Squadron RNZAF . The Venom also saw combat service during

3154-446: The Venom was a completely new design. As originally designed, it was powered by the de Havilland Ghost 103 turbojet engine, which was capable of generating 4,850lb of thrust, considerably more powerful than the earlier de Havilland Goblin that had been used on the Vampire. The Venom adopted a wing designed with a leading edge sweepback of 17.6 degrees, a minimised thickness/chord ratio reduced from 14 per cent to 10 per cent, while

3237-571: The aircraft was intended to be operated as an interim solution, lying between the first generation of British jet fighters – straight-wing aircraft powered by centrifugal flow engines such as the Gloster Meteor and the Vampire – and later swept wing, axial flow -engined combat aircraft, such as the Hawker Hunter and de Havilland Sea Vixen . In comparison with the Vampire, it had a thinner wing and

3320-440: The airport itself instead of the city it serves, while another code is reserved which refers to the city itself which can be used to search for flights to any of its airports. For instance: Or using a code for the city in one of the major airports and then assigning another code to another airport: When different cities with the same name each have an airport, they need to be assigned different codes. Examples include: Sometimes,

3403-418: The airport's former name, such as Orlando International Airport 's MCO (for Mc C o y Air Force Base), or Chicago's O'Hare International Airport , which is coded ORD for its original name: Or char d Field. In rare cases, the code comes from the airport's unofficial name, such as Kahului Airport 's OGG (for local aviation pioneer Jimmy H ogg ). In large metropolitan areas, airport codes are often named after

Tengah Air Base - Misplaced Pages Continue

3486-822: The closure of Murai Urban Training Facility . A new runway will be built on the expanded portion of the base. IATA airport code The assignment of these codes is governed by IATA Resolution 763, and it is administered by the IATA's headquarters in Montreal , Canada. The codes are published semi-annually in the IATA Airline Coding Directory. IATA provides codes for airport handling entities, and for certain railway stations. Alphabetical lists of airports sorted by IATA code are available. A list of railway station codes , shared in agreements between airlines and rail lines such as Amtrak , SNCF , and Deutsche Bahn ,

3569-491: The code SHA, while the newer Shanghai–Pudong adopted PVG. The opposite was true for Berlin : the airport Berlin–Tegel used the code TXL, while its smaller counterpart Berlin–Schönefeld used SXF; the Berlin Brandenburg Airport has the airport code BER, which is also part of its branding. The airports of Hamburg (HAM) and Hannover (HAJ) are less than 100 nautical miles (190 km) apart and therefore share

3652-572: The conflict progressed, squadrons equipped with the Venom were reequipped, mainly by the English Electric Canberra ; in 1960, the final squadron in the region that used the type was reequipped with the Hawker Hunter . Outside of the RAF, the Swiss Air Force were the most prolific user of the Venom. In addition to the domestic production of 136 ground attack-orientated models and its Ghost engine to power them, Switzerland also produced

3735-689: The control of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force while the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service took over the other two RAF stations of Sembawang Air Base 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 centre of Singapore City, while the Japanese Navy took command of

3818-533: The development programme; it was delivered to the A&;AEE for further trials on 3 April 1951. The first six production Venom also participated in trials performed by both de Havilland and the A&AEE. On 21 April 1952, the first delivery of a production-standard Venom, a single-seat fighter-bomber, was made to the Central Fighter Establishment , where it was used for a full service evaluation prior to

3901-670: The end of March 1971 and Tengah was handed over to the Singapore Air Defence Command (later the Republic of Singapore Air Force) by 1973, after the British Withdrawal following the defence cuts. Despite this, the airfield continued to host British and Commonwealth air forces and troops under the auspices of the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) until 1976. The RAAF pulled out of Tengah in 1983. It

3984-440: The end of company trials, the prototype was delivered to RAF Boscombe Down for official trials by the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE). In the course of these trials, the aircraft proved capable of satisfactory performance, including the besting of some contemporary fighters during mock combat, while some minor faults were also uncovered. On 23 May 1950, the second prototype, VV613 , officially joined

4067-420: The end of the confrontation. According to British MoD documents declassified in 2000, up to 48 Red Beard tactical nuclear weapons were secretly stowed in a highly secured weapons storage facility at Tengah, between 1962 and 1970, for possible use by the V bomber force detachment and 45 Sqn Canberras for Britain's military commitment to South East Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) . The RAF station closed at

4150-658: The end of the emergency. During the period of Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation , 20 Squadron with its Hawker Hunter fighter aircraft in addition to the Gloster Javelins of 60 Squadron and 64 Squadron , were based on the airfield to help upgrade the air defence of Singapore and Peninsula Malaysia against infrequent air incursions from the MiG-21s and P-51 Mustangs of the Indonesian Air Force . 74 Squadron Lightnings were deployed following Confrontation to replace

4233-919: The end. Examples include: A lot of minor airfields without scheduled passenger traffic have ICAO codes but not IATA codes, since the four letter codes allow more number of codes, and IATA codes are mainly used for passenger services such as tickets, and ICAO codes by pilots. In the US, such airfields use FAA codes instead of ICAO. There are airports with scheduled service for which there are ICAO codes but not IATA codes, such as Nkhotakota Airport/Tangole Airport in Malawi or Chōfu Airport in Tokyo, Japan. There are also several minor airports in Russia (e.g., Omsukchan Airport ) which lack IATA codes and instead use internal Russian codes for booking. Flights to these airports cannot be booked through

SECTION 50

#1732870008230

4316-557: The first three letters of the city in which it is located, for instance: The code may also be a combination of the letters in its name, such as: Sometimes the airport code reflects pronunciation, rather than spelling, namely: For many reasons, some airport codes do not fit the normal scheme described above. Some airports, for example, cross several municipalities or regions, and therefore, use codes derived from some of their letters, resulting in: Other airports—particularly those serving cities with multiple airports—have codes derived from

4399-474: The following format: Most large airports in Canada have codes that begin with the letter "Y", although not all "Y" codes are Canadian (for example, YUM for Yuma, Arizona , and YNT for Yantai , China), and not all Canadian airports start with the letter "Y" (for example, ZBF for Bathurst, New Brunswick ). Many Canadian airports have a code that starts with W, X or Z, but none of these are major airports. When

4482-466: The following year. In this capacity, the Venom was only operated for a short time, those squadrons stationed at RAF Fassberg transitioned to the Hawker Hunter in 1955, while those at RAF Celle were disbanded in 1957. Throughout the mid-1950s, Venoms were dispatched to the furthest corners of the British Empire , being typically used to replace the Vampire in the fighter-bomber role. In August 1955,

4565-593: The form of " YYZ ", a song by the rock band Rush , which utilizes the Morse code signal as a musical motif. Some airports have started using their IATA codes as brand names , such as Calgary International Airport (YYC) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR). Numerous New Zealand airports use codes that contain the letter Z, to distinguish them from similar airport names in other countries. Examples include HLZ for Hamilton , ZQN for Queenstown , and WSZ for Westport . Predominantly, airport codes are named after

4648-556: The heavier bombs being an improvement over the Vampire FB 5. For additional range, each of the wing tips could be fitted with a 75 imp gal (340 L) fuel tank, freeing up the underwing stores positions for other stores and munitions, these tanks could not be jettisoned during flight. When installed, the tip tanks also had the effect of improving the aircraft's roll rate, which was lower than many of its contemporaries. Early production Venoms commonly suffered from weaknesses within

4731-482: The international air booking systems or have international luggage transferred there, and thus, they are booked instead through the airline or a domestic booking system. Several heliports in Greenland have 3-letter codes used internally which might be IATA codes for airports in faraway countries. There are several airports with scheduled service that have not been assigned ICAO codes that do have IATA codes, especially in

4814-470: The jungles of Peninsular Malaysia . In 1952 45 Squadron was equipped with de Havilland Hornets and re-equipped with Venoms in 1955 at RAF Butterworth when it was amalgamated with 33 Squadron ] T.11's of 60 Squadron , joined by 14 Squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force . In 1958 they were joined by 45 Squadron and No. 75 Squadron RNZAF , both equipped with English Electric Canberra B.2. The RAAF retained their Lincolns, with 1 Squadron , until

4897-612: The name of the airport itself, for instance: This is also true with some cities with a single airport (even if there is more than one airport in the metropolitan area of said city), such as BDL for Hartford, Connecticut 's B ra dl ey International Airport or Baltimore's BWI, for B altimore/ W ashington I nternational Airport ; however, the latter also serves Washington, D.C. , alongside Dulles International Airport (IAD, for I nternational A irport D ulles) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA, for D istrict of C olumbia A irport). The code also sometimes comes from

4980-476: The night fighter role, the Venom was also adopted by export customers; the Swedish Air Force adopted the type as their principal night fighter in 1955 and operated three squadrons in this capacity. RAF Venoms saw action during the Malayan Emergency , which took place between 1948 and 1960, although these aircraft did not commence operations until the mid-1950s with Nos. 45 and 60 Squadrons. While there,

5063-414: The night fighter, the Venom NF.3, was introduced to squadron service. However, the night fighter Venom had only a relatively brief career with the RAF, having been procured to serve as an interim solution while more capable designs were developed. Accordingly, in 1957, the RAF's night fighter Venoms began to be withdrawn in favour of the newly introduced Gloster Javelin twin-engined all-weather fighter. In

SECTION 60

#1732870008230

5146-542: The north, which included the Royal Navy dockyard at Sembawang . During the Malayan Emergency , Tengah was used to house Avro Lincolns of the RAF and Royal Australian Air Force and Bristol Brigands of No. 84 Squadron RAF which performed bombing sorties against pro-independence forces led by the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) , led by the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) deep in

5229-416: The one they are located in: Other airport codes are of obscure origin, and each has its own peculiarities: In Asia, codes that do not correspond with their city's names include Niigata 's KIJ , Nanchang 's KHN and Pyongyang 's FNJ . EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg , which serves three countries, has three airport codes: BSL, MLH, EAP. Some cities have a name in their respective language which

5312-481: The rain came misting through in the frequent tropical showers . . . There was no longer any door at all on the room allotted to Peter and me . . . Not long after their arrival, O'Brien and his Hudsons departed Singapore just ahead of the conquering Japanese. Tengah was the first airfield to be captured when Japanese forces invaded Singapore . After the Japanese completed their capture of Singapore, Tengah came under

5395-503: The remaining Venoms in RAF service were withdrawn from first-line duties, having proven their worth in a variety of locations across the world, in peace and war, and in some of the most difficult climates the RAF has ever faced. The very last Venoms to leave active service were those aircraft in service with the Swiss Air Force, the last of which being retired from combat duties during the latter part of 1983. The Venom has been preserved in significant numbers, mainly due to its longevity with

5478-501: The same first and middle letters, indicating that this rule might be followed only in Germany. Many cities retain historical names in their airport codes, even after having undergone an official name/spelling/transliteration change: Some airport codes are based on previous names associated with a present airport, often with a military heritage. These include: Some airports are named for an administrative division or nearby city, rather than

5561-497: The station code of Malton, Mississauga , where it is located). YUL is used for Montréal–Trudeau (UL was the ID code for the beacon in the city of Kirkland , now the location of Montréal–Trudeau). While these codes make it difficult for the public to associate them with a particular Canadian city, some codes have become popular in usage despite their cryptic nature, particularly at the largest airports. Toronto's code has entered pop culture in

5644-514: The territory of the Sultanate, which was a de facto British colony, in order to gain access to oil wells in the interior parts of Oman. The RAF conducted 1,635 raids, dropping 1,094 tons and firing 900 rockets at the interior of Oman between July and December 1958; insurgents were the primary targets, resulting various mountain top villages, water channels, and crops being struck in a conflict that remained relatively low profile internationally. As

5727-443: The time, many operators were not previously familiar with such means of start up. Early production models lacked ejection seats , which was subject to official criticism and in response, they were fitted in later production models. The airframe itself had a relatively short life in UK service as it had been designed as a short term interim aircraft pending development of what would become the Hawker Hunter but in Swiss service, where

5810-410: The twenty who set off" from Britain for Singapore survived the Far East campaign. Tengah had already been under air attack by the Japanese, but he said it was easy to imagine the once elegant, but now badly damaged, officers' mess just a few weeks before their arrival. He said it: . . . stood proud on a grassy slope to the south of the field, from the terrace you looked over the lush green grass, then

5893-401: The two-letter code of the radio beacons that were the closest to the actual airport, such as YQX in Gander or YXS in Prince George . Four of the ten provincial capital airports in Canada have ended up with codes beginning with YY, including: Canada's largest airport is YYZ for Toronto Pearson (as YTZ was already allocated to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport , the airport was given

5976-457: The type being cleared for active service. During 1952, the initial production model entered operational service with the RAF as the 'Venom FB 1'. A total of 375 of this initial model were constructed. On 22 August 1950, an improved Venom, the NF.2 night fighter, performed its first flight, piloted by John Derry. de Havilland had developed it from the single seat ground attack-oriented Venom to serve as

6059-477: The type in an active military role, finally retiring their last examples during 1983. Large numbers of ex-military Venoms have since been acquired by private entities and several have continued to fly, performing aerial displays at various air shows, while many examples have been preserved in static display conditions in museums and as gate guardians . During 1948, the British aircraft manufacturer de Havilland proposed

6142-407: The type under license were explored; these did not materialise however. On account of substantial demand for the type from the Swiss Air Force , a licensed production arrangement was established with a consortium of Swiss aviation manufacturers in 1953, who did produce large numbers of Venoms. In the early 1970s, Swiss Venoms were equipped with a new extended nose to add space for the addition of

6225-432: The type was subject to a lengthy service life, several strengthening modifications were performed to more than double its viable lifespan. It was known for its simplicity in construction and relative cost-effectiveness, which contributed to its popularity to export customers. In August 1952, No. 11 Squadron become the first overseas squadron to convert to the Venom in exchange for their existing Vampires inventory; No. 11

6308-529: The use of two letters allowed only a few hundred combinations; a three-letter system of airport codes was implemented. This system allowed for 17,576 permutations, assuming all letters can be used in conjunction with each other. Since the U.S. Navy reserved "N" codes, and to prevent confusion with Federal Communications Commission broadcast call signs , which begin with "W" or "K", the airports of certain U.S. cities whose name begins with one of these letters had to adopt "irregular" airport codes: This practice

6391-404: The wing structure, leading to flight limitations and warning markings being applied to distinguish them from typical aircraft. The Venom FB 1 was powered by a single 4,850 lbf (21.6 kN) thrust de Havilland Ghost 48 Mk.1 turbojet engine; later marks were equipped with increasingly powerful models. The engine was ignited using explosive cartridges, known as Coffman engine starters ; at

6474-401: Was also procured by the Swiss Air Force . On 2 September 1949, the first Venom prototype, VV612 , performed its maiden flight . The Venom entered service with the RAF in 1952, where it was operated as both a single-seat fighter-bomber and two-seat night fighter . Despite the type's relatively short service life with the RAF, British Venoms saw active combat on multiple occasions, including

6557-510: Was modified after being involved in several accidents in which pilots had difficulty making night-time approaches. Changes included the adoption of jettisonable clear canopies and alterations to the flight control surfaces , and the altered aircraft were re-designated NF.2A s. The Venom NF.2 was soon followed by the NF 3 , which was the ultimate night fighter variant of the Venom. It incorporated further improvements, including power-actuated ailerons and an improved air interception radar. In 1953,

6640-533: Was opened in 1939. Tengah airfield was the target of carpet bombing when 17 Japanese Navy bombers conducted the first air raid on Singapore , shortly after the Battle of Malaya began. In a 1990 memoir, former Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot Terence O'Brien described leading (in late December 1941) a flight of Lockheed Hudsons from Britain to Singapore, which was already under attack by the time he and his aircrews arrived at Tengah. He noted that only eight "of us out of

6723-682: Was renamed RSAF Tengah in 1971 (then it became Tengah Air Base (TAB) ), when it was handed over to the Singapore Air Defence Command (SADC). Currently, the air base houses aircraft such as the Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Fighting Falcons . RSAF50 parade took place on 1 September 2018 at TAB. The parade featured almost 500 personnel in a march-past, mobile column and a Salute-to-the-Nation flypast involving 20 aircraft. The new Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft made its maiden public appearance. The static display also showcased both retired and present aircraft. On 8 May 2024,

6806-501: Was responsible for conducting the type's operational service trials for the service. Upon their introduction to service, none of the single-seat fighter-bomber Venoms were deployed to home-based squadrons; priority was given to overseas forces, such as the Second Tactical Air Force stationed in Germany as well as those stationed in hotter climates where the benefits of the more powerful engine were most felt, such as Cyprus ,

6889-404: Was the first to be compatible with the underwing fuel tanks. The majority of the type's production was conducted by de Havilland themselves. Following the completion of an initial batch of 15 production Venoms, manufacturing was transferred from de Havilland's Hatfield facility to their larger production plant at Hawarden Airport . On 26 July 1952, the first Hawarden-built Venom was delivered to

#229770