Is 'hotlilypadman' next to be offended? Dunno. Don't Care.
So - anyway....
Singapore and the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter 18 Oct 2013 Mike Yeo
"...With Singapore’s strategic limitations in mind, the F-35B would appear to be a very prudent option to consider. A fleet of easily-dispersed STOVL-capable assets capable of taking off fully loaded from a 168m (550ft) runway would ensure that the RSAF would be able to keep up combat air operations even without operational, full length runways in the event of an enemy first strike. Such a capability would certainly complicate any adversary's calculations in attempting a first strike to nullify Singapore's defenses.
With the recent announcement by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong that land-scarce Singapore will close one of its three tactical fighter bases to free up land for residential and industrial use in the near future, this would leave Tengah Air Base in the west and Changi Air Base (East), next to Singapore’s international airport in eastern Singapore, as the only bases to house the RSAF’s air combat aircraft. Both airbases will be expanded and upgraded to accommodate the relocation of RSAF aircraft and units currently based at Paya Lebar.
With the number of available runways in Singapore to be reduced by one, having an air combat asset on hand capable of STOVL operations would assume a greater importance in the mind of Singapore’s defense planners. It will be just one of many factors to consider, but the upgrades to Singapore’s existing fighter bases will likely include building thermally coated “lilypads” that would enable F-35Bs to land vertically without the hot exhaust gases damaging the tarmac.
However, Ng has also said that Singapore is in no hurry to make a decision, even if he has called the F-35 “a suitable aircraft to further modernise (Singapore’s) fighter fleet.”...
http://thediplomat.com/2013/10/18/si...hter/?all=true