Originally Posted by
Fareastdriver
By going to Google Earth and searching for Long Pasir, Sabah, you wil find the villiage of Long Pasir. A few hundred metres to the west just before the river one can see the outline of the old airstrip that was used during Confrontation in the 1960s. This airstrip was originally built buy the RE and it needed a fair amount of earth moved to complete it. The answer to this was an Air Portable Grader, of which the only example was in Singapore. This was asked for and it was flown to Labuan complete with specialist dispatch crew.
Local knowledge was not required so they prepared the grader for dropping the next day. The Beverley took off, positioned for the run in to Long Pasir and at precisely the right moment the grader slid out of the back.
I have mentioned nylon parachutes before.
Returning to Google Earth if you look at there southern end the is a irregularly shaped hole filled with water. It would have been deeper but the Gurkhas just filled it in over the top.
I think you refer to Long Pasia, looks like the airstrip regularly floats since the water buffalos are wading up to the neck in the pictures.
004°24'25.47"N 115°43'28.39"E
IG