Last flight of thr Skyhawks

last SG · 2005-04-01T23:06:47+00:00

how bout the remaining base in France? still use as AJT?

sbst275 SG

Yes... But are they for active combat duties as regular as the F-16 or F-5?

And pls, mind your language

Zooish SG

Different squadrons got their own flight schedules mah, b'cos SG airspace too small liao, if all fly together sure will langah one. Plus the planes need maintainence, heard the technicians say that some parts have to be replaced after every flight. So one or two days a week there will be no flights, allow the techs to do maintenance.

The A4s are being replaced by F16s. So the pilots will still be flying.

Your knowledge of such stuff will still be limited EVEN if you've been in NS. If you wan to know more, sign on as pilot or ACS or technician lor.

Zooish SG

You can't compare ONE squadron of A4s compared to dozens of F16 squadrons.
Mind you, the A4s were still involved in exercises as recently as early 2004.

Cens SG

You can't compare ONE squadron of A4s compared to dozens of F16 squadrons.
Mind you, the A4s were still involved in exercises as recently as early 2004

I can tell you that they just had an exercise last month and they did quite well for it[/code]

dettol SG

Of course . A4s are on standby duties as often as other a/c types before the retirement. A4s even stood in for other a/c types to be on alert.

Please, if dunno, dun anyhow say. In fact A4 pilots even out-perform F16s in certain aspects which i shall not elaborate.

I will miss the A4. Its such a beautiful bird. I think its the best a/c the RSAF ever had. Sad

dettol SG

Hmmm... thats what you think? Is it because you only see the A4 in the Black Knight outfit at AA?

Any Tom, Dick or Harry who live around the base will tell you otherwise.

branzzz SG

hey! i saw this event about two weeks ago over my gf’s place in jurong! the formations were beautiful… i saw the diamond, and the four skyhawks carrying out what was a final derry turn to come into tengah to land. man, the end of an era. i never thought that would be the last time i would see these planes over our skies.

SBS3624G SG

Cannot be. The F-5 has top speed of M1.6, and I fancy that the tiger eyes can fly faster as they are lightly loaded. Skyhawk was sub-sonic, so even if you up-grade, how much can the speed increase? F-5 also feature more advanced aerodynamics like area-ruled fuselage, making it a more efficient flyer. However, the skyhawk was never built for speed. It was built as small as possible and for heavy-loads, so we can't really compare to the F-5, which was built for agility and low cost.

Paladin SG

Experience learned from the upgrading.

Hornet145 SG

Aiya, there goes my favourite aircraft. Still missed it even though it had been 5 years since I last touched one. The NGF isn't chosen yet but phase out already. So I doubt SG haven't made a choice yet. Frankly I don't care. By the way, do any of you guys know what will happen to the Skyhawk NSmen? Will they go for new type course and convert or become armourers which is quite similar for most aircrafts or we become firemen Mr. Green .

CenturionMBT SG

speed is not everything when it comes to dogfighting.
if you talk about agility, the A4 beats the F5 hands down.

and we are talking about sidewinders only not super missiles like aim 120.

when the two had a dog fight just after the upgrade, they said that the A4s was so agile, with all the tight turns and loops that the F5s had to go after burners just to keep up with it.Finally within 10 mins of dog fighting, the F5s were both "shot" and had to return to base for refueling. ccording to what i heard, the A4s still had 30 mins of flying time and they were still flying around , playing some mock dogfights with each other.

Dun ask me where i got this info. I just knew it.

epImetheus SG

it is not the only the planes that matters, also the skills & experince of the pilots in their respective planes.
i've heard tales of singapore A-4SU 'gunning down' amercian f-16s as well. Laughing

sbst275 SG

Super Skyhawks fly high for one last time

If you spotted a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) A4-SU Super Skyhawk flying overhead on 31 Mar morning, you had actually witnessed a part of history.

After 31 years of operations, the RSAF withdrew its fleet of Super Skyhawks from operational service on 31 Mar.

The RSAF's 142 Squadron has been flying these fighter planes since 1974, and was the first RSAF squadron to be equipped with the upgraded A4-SU Super Skyhawks.

To mark this significant milestone, a special flypast was conducted over Tengah Air Base. Twelve A4-SU Super Skyhawks took to the skies for one final flight over Singapore.

Flying with the pilots were some of the top brass of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), including Chief of Defence Force, Lieutenant General (LG) Ng Yat Chung, and Chief of Air Force, Major-General (MG) Lim Kim Choon.

Speaking at a simple ceremony after the flight, MG Lim called the fleet of Super Skyhawks "a faithful friend", one that had accomplished many missions and achieved much throughout its nearly 300,000 hours of operational flying.

The A4-SUs' achievements included flying directly from Singapore to the Philippines, incorporating the RSAF's first air-to-air refuelling mission in 1986, as well as the excellent aerobatic display of the 'red and white' Super Skyhawks flown by the RSAF Black Knights during Asian Aerospace 1990.

Thumbs up for a good flight! Chief of Defence Force, LG Ng Yat Chung (right) and MAJ Theng Fai Yew, take to the skies in a Super Skyhawk for one final time.

Commanding Officer of 142 Squadron, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Tay Boon Chong, who flew with MG Lim, was also full of praise for the aircraft he has been flying since 1992.

He likened the planes to a Singapore "icon" for their many appearances at National Day Parades through the years.

"I think they have a place in the hearts of Singaporeans and I am sure they have inspired many to join the RSAF to become fighter pilots," said LTC Tay.

In recent months, the Super Skyhawks had continued to perform exceptionally, participating in various exercises and even coming out tops in a competition among the six RSAF fighter squadrons in February.

Said LTC Tay: "I am glad we are ending on a high note." - CyberPioneer

LazerLordz SG

That's one reason why the A-4 has always been the USAF's choice as an Aggressor platform for their pilots to match wits against.It's a very agile plane, and subsequently, the F-16 has taken over its mantle as a premier dogfighter.

tvdog SG

It is very sad to see the Skyhawks go as they are indeed superb aircrafts for what they are worth.

The Israelis were quite happy with them and the Argentines used them with mixed results during the Falklands War against the Brits.

During the Falklands War, Argentine suffered heavy losses of abbout 10 aircrafts but they delivered the heaviest blows to the British Royal Navy, sinking three ships with... IRON BOMBS!!! Keep It Stupid n Simple.

But it is great news that they will be replaced by F-16s and that the F-16s will in place be replaced by better aircrafts.

Cool!!!

seancannot SG

Actually read some Magazine b 4, Amercian refer to Sky hawk as Scooter , it is one of the most liked and agile fighter bomber ever built , it has done its job well in vietnam and israel. It probably has accomplished more mission than the likes of F 16, F14.

cairocks SG

So sad that this is true. Sad The A4 skyhawk was the first real RSAF plane I saw in the sky way back when I was in kindergarden. Remembered that there was a loud noise and I looked out of the classroom door, saw 2 skyhawks flew past. And that was almost 30 years ago. Believe it or not, I was already plane crazy back then. At that time, I had this book where I paste pics of planes(both civilian & mil) cut out from newspapers back then and I can also id them all. Twisted Evil

YI SG

i will miss the super skyhawk. but for the safety of our servicemen, maybe it’s really time to let them go. there is only so much servicing can do.

CenturionMBT SG

so the question now is, with no A4s and F16As which aircraft is going to displayed as the black knights acrobatic team this year?

LazerLordz SG

F-16C?

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