Private Flying in Singapore
 

My firm has asked me to consider a move out to Singapore and I'm weighing up the pros and cons. Would love to get insight from someone who has experienced what private aviation is like out there. The rental scene seems to have few options as far as the Internet tells me, licence conversion seems to involve a medical, 2 exams and a skills test. Are there many syndicates out there? Any experience of rental in singapore or southern Malaysia? How easy is it to tour the region by light aircraft? Many thanks! Alex

Alex,

I've been a regular visitor to SIN for 10 years now and seen little General Aviation activity - looks like Seletar is where some light aircraft are allowed.

I use the word "allowed" on purpose as every facet of life there is tightly regulated by the government. The idea of large numbers of the citizens whizzing about in Pipers, Cessnas or RV-7s would simply not be countenanced.

Expect it to be reasonably difficult and quite expensive with more restrictions than the UK. If you can push through that then I would think some enjoyable trips - Malaysia etc - would be possible.

As an aside, when I first tried to play golf there I thought the course was run by escaped Gestapo officers!!

Good luck and take plenty of ID :ok:

It used to be the case that Singapore was one of the few places outside Europe/USA that did not require previous clearance for private flights ... this mark of civilization got brownie points from me.

Be careful to cross the road correctly though .....

I am not sure there is much there, maybe one flying club with 1 plane. looking at the fees its £1200 per year membership and £200 per hour solo for the republic of Singapore flying club

weather is always hot and humid! you would probably have to go to Malaysia to find anything sensible.

how long would you be there for? on the basis of 20% tax.... might be worth it to save some money!

I agree. Many people did this when I was based there.

Pummel, I lived in that region for almost 15 years including 7 years in Singapore and 5 in Philippines it's a brilliant place to live but in all honestly not that great for GA. As ETOPS said there's not much in the way of light aviation in Singapore. For a tiny island that has three active airbases and a major airport airspace is pretty crowded to say the least. I do recall that Singapore Airlines operated a couple of Pipers ( Cherokee or Arrow not sure) but I don't know if they were available to Joe public. Last I heard Seletar was being set up as a bizjet servicing hub , so there might be some other opportunities there, it's a few years since I left.
Malaysia is your best best. there's a few private strips such as Segamat where they skydive and fly.
Philippines and Thailand are much better for GA and there are more places to see and go, but that may not be helpful if you're going to be located in Singapore.
I ended up taking up skydiving just to get airborne when I was living in Singapore which probably shows how desperate the situation was !

"Captain Stravaigin" of this parish is the man to contact - he is a FI based in KL and should be able to give you the local info you require.

The Republic of Singapore Aero Club is active at Seletar; operating, when I was last there, a couple of Aerospatiale TB9, TB10 aircraft. There are a few private owners mainly with higher powers singles and twins.

Local flying is somewhat restricted (its the only place I've had to file flight plans and hand in my passport to airport security to fly circuits!) so many flyers commute across the Causeway to Johor Bahru in Malaysia to fly in the more relaxed GA environment there.

Bear in mind it is hot and thermic and due to smoke haze visibility for VFR flying is often poor by European standards - and you certainly don't want to mix with 38,000 foot CBs, so your flying remains weather-regulated. So saying there are cracking fly-out destinations such as Tioman Island, where a five-minute walk from the airport takes you to an idyllic tropical beach and seafood restaurant!

Thanks for all the replies! Much appreciated. My romantic visions of leaving work on a friday, popping to the airport and disappearing to a different country or island each weekend may be some way away from reality, but there's some really useful information here to get me started.

Pummel,

My information is a few years out of date now, so there may be some changes.

I used to keep my own aircraft at Seletar. Using club aircraft is just too difficult for regular flying and if you want any kind of flexibility, keep your own.

Parking is mainly outside (no free hangar space) but works ok in the main and is/was cheap. If you are on a foreign registration with the same license, it is pretty straightforward. As is planning and filing. VFR departures to Malaysia (Johor and further afield are very easy, IFR, perhaps easier still). Fuel used to be cheap (don't know now). Maintenance can be done at Hawker Pacific (but quite expensive, so be sure your plane is in good condition before locating to Seletar)

Some very nice and easy destinations in Malaysia, reachable without too much fuss, both mainland and island. Be careful of inland routes, as CB's build very quickly and reduce your options, however, offshore VFR routes are at inexplicable low altitudes way out to sea.

Best option is to file IFR, but fly mostly VFR on the lesser convective days, unless you have a very good radar.

Local training can be done on a very tight training area in Singapore, or better, just depart VFR to Johor (10-15mins flying) and do what you need to do there. Aero's not permitted in Sing, but ditto the Johor option.

So I'm 6 months in, and here's my experience:

I ended up signing up with Wings Over Asia who are kindof a regional FBO stroke club stroke dealership stroke... Whatever they are they have been incredibly helpful and the flying community here seems alive. There are a large number of members, not sure how active they are. I've been flying DA40/SR22 and I've clocked up about 50 hours since i've been out here. The rental rates are comparative to equivalent aircraft in the UK, and I've not run into availability issues. WOA members have been absolutely great, and the scale of the flying is above and beyond what I expected. Since arriving out here i've flown (VFR) to Langkawi, Pengang, Melaka, Tioman, KL (Subang) in Malaysia, Hua Hin, Hat Yai, Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phitsanulok in Thailand and I'm planning trips to more of Peninsular Malaysia and across to Borneo in the next 6 - 9 months. It's true that the weather can be hazy, and the afternoon thunderstorms are to be avoided. Also many controllers further north in Malaysia and into Thailand don't seem to fully understand what VFR means, so I'm currently working towards my IR to try and simplify that. Landing fees in Malaysia are a bargain ( Landing + 3 nights parking in Langkawi was < 4 GBP). Thailand can get expensive with Handling charges. Also getting used to the Coms can be a challenge - in particular place names combined with a local accent can be tough but after a few flights you get used to it. VFR routes can be very low and sometimes seem to lead you straight into hillsides, but provide useful ways to get through the controlled zones. Customs/Immigration wise there is a lot more paperwork than I have found flying in Europe, but its pretty simple once you have the hang of it, and I have a spreadsheet which produces all of mine for me before I fly. I've flown to some great places - landing at Tioman with its 'no go arounds below 200ft' rule gives a real sense of adventure, and the approach to Langkawi international over the Archipelago is breaktaking. The dramatic aspect of Penang from 1000 feet is also something that makes you glad you have a pilots licence.

Thanks again to everyone who gave me tips, and thanks to all the people I've met through WOA who are making the flying amazing fun!

Pummel, this is a great report and while moving to Singapore isn't anything I'm planning currently/medium term, I've lived there before (and before I had my PPL) and should I ever come back, I will gladly remember your words! Most other reports I've come across had been rather more negative.

Enjoy your (flying) time there!

Thanks for a great report! I'd love to spend time working out that way, and it's good to know that there's decent flying to be had.

Thanks for bringing back memories for me Pummel.

Flying around Singapore is wonderful
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Tioman island off the coast of Malaysia is nice for lunch. No chance for an overshoot on finals thought.
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