Beginnings (1934-1940) In the years 1934 and 1935, a section of the Bukit Sembawang Rubber Estate located on
Singapore Island was acquired by the
Air Ministry for the purpose of establishing a grass
airfield intended for the Royal Air Force. The necessary approval for this construction was granted in 1936, leading to the commencement of work by
British Army engineers in the subsequent year. The airfield was originally designed to accommodate two RAF bomber squadrons, however, it was later reassigned to the
Admiralty. Plans were then made to convert the site into an airbase and aircraft repair yard, aimed at supporting a proposed
Eastern Fleet that would include up to four Royal Navy
fleet carriers. By May 1940, the airfield was nearly operational and was once again transferred, this time to the
Royal Australian Air Force.
RAAF Station Sembawang (1940-1941) July and August of 1940, saw the Royal Australian Air Force's
Nos. 1 and
No. 8 Squadrons stationed here with twelve
Lockheed Hudson light bomber aircraft each, but with No. 8 squadron departing in November. In early 1941,
No. 21 Squadron RAAF relocated from
RAF Seletar, Singapore, to re-equip with
Brewster Buffalo fighter aircraft, briefly conducting operations from RAAF Station Sembawang before being sent to
Malaya. Additionally,
No. 453 Squadron RAAF, which also utilised Buffalo fighter aircraft, arrived in August 1941 and remained operational at this location until their deployment to Malaya in mid-December 1941. Personnel and equipment for Mobile Naval Air Base IX had commenced assembly on 1 June 1945, at
RNAS Middle Wallop (HMS Flycatcher),
Hampshire, UK. This base was designated as the second Fighter Support Mobile Naval Air Base (MONAB) and its technical components were Mobile Maintenance (MM) No. 8, Mobile Servicing (MS) Nos. 15 & 16 and Mobile, Storage & Reserve (MSR) No. 10, all of which provided support for
Vought Corsair Mk II & IV,
Grumman Hellcat F Mk. II and
Supermarine Seafire F Mk III, L Mk III & F Mk XV. MONAB IX was established as an independent command under the designation HMS
Nabrock on 1 August 1945, with
Captain J.S.C. Salter ,
RN,
assuming command. The personnel of MONAB IX reached
Liverpool from HMS
Flycather and boarded the troopship , which then set sail for
Sydney,
Australia, via the
Suez Canal. Upon arrival, the MONAB personnel were transferred to , where they awaited the assignment of an operational base. During this interim period, they were temporarily accommodated in
tents at
Warwick Farm Racecourse. It was determined that the unit would be deployed similarly to MONAB VIII, with plans to reopen the airfield at
Sembawang on the Island of Singapore. Three advance parties travelled by aircraft, while the remaining members of the unit, constituting the main body, were to journey by sea, embarking on the Australian
troopship MV
Largs Bay. On 1 November, the primary contingent of personnel aboard the MV
Largs Bay arrived in Singapore. They initiated the process of assembling crated
United States manufactured aircraft, a significant number of which were Grumman Hellcat fighter aircraft. After assembly, these aircraft were transported by road to a nearby dockyard, where they were loaded onto
aircraft carriers for disposal at sea. This procedure was in accordance with the stipulations of the
Lend-Lease Act policy with the United States, which facilitated the provision of these aircraft. Following the
conclusion of the war, the United Kingdom was obligated to either return any remaining equipment or compensate for it. However, the United States was not inclined to reclaim the aircraft due to an existing surplus, and the UK lacked the financial resources to make payment. Consequently, the destruction of the aircraft was deemed the most viable solution. On 15 December 1945, HMS
Nabrock was
decommissioned at RNAS Sembawang, coinciding with the re-commissioning of the naval air station as HMS
Simbang. Although the Mobile Naval Air Base (MONAB) effectively came to an end, the personnel remained the same, and efforts to construct airframes for disposal persisted. On 1 November, the 13th Carrier Air Group returned to HMS
Triumph, subsequently disembarking back to the airbase on 8 December. The airbase at Sembawang was officially handed back to the Royal Navy in January 1950, and HMS
Simbang was re-commissioned there.
Re-commissioning of HMS Simbang (1962-1971) On 4 September 1962 the airbase at Sembawang was officially re-commissioned, HMS
Simbang. On this same date, both 815 and 848 Naval Air Squadrons arrived at the station. 848 Naval Air Squadron stayed for a week before re-embarking on HMS
Bulwark, while 815 Naval Air Squadron re-joined HMS
Ark Royal on the 29 of the month. Throughout October and November, there was a cessation of naval flying activities, although the improvements to the
control tower were completed in November as part of ongoing updates to the station. Flying operations resumed in December, with 814 Naval Air Squadron disembarking from HMS
Hermes on 21. 814 Naval Air Squadron re-embarked on HMS
Hermes on 5 January 1963, marking the beginning of a significant year that also saw the initial deployments from
845 and
846 Naval Air Squadrons to HMS
Simbang. On 10 January, 846 Naval Air Squadron disembarked four Westland Wessex HAS.1 anti-submarine helicopters, while a detachment from 845 Naval Air Squadron flew ashore from HMS
Albion. Subsequently, 846 Naval Air Squadron re-embarked on 1 February and the remaining 845 Naval Air Squadron disembarked on 12. Additionally, 814 Naval Air Squadron flew in from HMS
Hermes once more, on the 25. On 17 April 845 Naval Air Squadron returned to HMS
Albion and 814 Naval Air Squadron joined the Royal Australian Navy's aircraft carrier on 20. In May, 846 Naval Air Squadron returned to RNAS Sembawang, with a detachment of six helicopters on the 17 for a brief stay before departing again on 24 June. The only activity in June involved 814 Naval Air Squadron, which disembarked from HMS
Hermes on the 13 and returned to the carrier on the 28. During the summer of 1963, HMS
Ark Royal disembarked the anti-submarine squadron, 815 Naval Air Squadron, which spent two deployments at RNAS Sembawang, from 11 to 24 July and 14 to 26 August. In February 1964, 815 Naval Air Squadron arrived, disembarking from HMS
Centaur on 12 and subsequently re-embarking on the 1 March. This squadron was succeeded by 814 Naval Air Squadron, which disembarked from HMS
Victorious for a short period, between 23 March and 8 April. 815 Naval Air Squadron made its final disembarkation from HMS
Centaur between 16 and 25 November. Meanwhile, HMS
Victorious re-embarked 814 Naval Air Squadron on 21 November, following its deployment to RNAS Sembawang on 23 September. In 1965, initiatives were started to enhance RNAS Sembawang, transforming it into a base dedicated to supporting commando operations, with the intention of establishing it as a Fleet Amphibious Forces Base. 820 Naval Air Squadron disembarked from the
Audacious-class aircraft carrier, with eight Westland Wessex HAS.1 anti-submarine warfare helicopters between January 14 and 26. Subsequently, on 5 March, 845 Naval Air Squadron disembarked from HMS
Bulwark until the end of March. Additionally in March, Westland Wessex HAS.31A, the Royal Australian Navy's anti-submarine warfare model, equipped
817 Squadron RAN, disembarked from HMAS
Melbourne. A detachment from 848 Naval Air Squadron disembarked from HMS
Albion on 28 April, which was now operating with the Westland Wessex HU.5 troop transporter helicopter. This unit was organised into a Headquarters Flight and four subordinate Flights designated as 'A', 'B', 'C', and 'D'. The entire unit was not fully assembled at RNAS Sembawang until 19 June. While the Headquarters Flight remained stationed at RNAS Sembawang, the four subordinate Flights were deployed to operate from jungle bases located in
Sibu, Nanga Gaat, and
Bario in
Borneo, as well as at
Labuan in the
Federal Territories of Malaysia, starting from 23 May. On 15 July, 815 Naval Air Squadron disembarked once more, this time from HMS
Ark Royal, and subsequently re-embarked on 3 August. They returned again on 4 September for an additional two-week period. Meanwhile, 820 Naval Air Squadron spent a week on land starting from 12 October, before re-joining HMS
Eagle on 19 October. They returned on 6 November for twelve days. 815 Naval Air Squadron arrived on 20 October and remained until 6 December. The completion of construction to accommodate a second Royal Marines unit, as part of the new Fleet Amphibious Forces Base for the Far East, occurred in March 1966, marking the introduction of
40 Commando. The amalgamation of the Royal Marines Brigade Flight, 40 Commando Air Troop, 42 Commando Air Troop, and
29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery Air Troop commenced in Sembawang, Singapore, in 1967. Subsequently, on 12 August 1968,
No. 3 Commando Brigade Air Squadron was established at RNAS Sembawang to provide support to the Royal Marines. The squadron's initial equipment consisted of fourteen
Westland Sioux AH.1 light observation helicopters. In March 1969, the Royal Marines received enhanced air support with the reformation of
847 Naval Air Squadron at RNAS Sembawang on 14 of the month. This squadron was established from a segment of 848 Naval Air Squadron and was equipped with eight Westland Wessex HU.5 transport helicopters. Subsequently, the newly formed 847 Naval Air Squadron embarked on HMS
Albion for a brief embarkation on 16 May, returning to the airbase on the 28. On 1 September 1971, the management of RNAS Sembawang was transferred to the
Singapore Air Defence Command. Concurrently, the facilities associated with the Fleet Amphibious Forces Base were reassigned to the
ANZUK Support Group. The decommissioning of HMS
Simbang occurred on 30 September 1971. Fleet Air Arm squadrons maintained their operations from Sembawang until October. Notably, 'A' Flight of 848 Naval Air Squadron had previously boarded the amphibious warfare ship on 27 August and the remainder of the squadron departed Sembawang for the last time on 17 September, when they boarded HMS
Albion. The final operations at Sembawang Air Base were conducted by the
Westland Sea King HAS.1 anti-submarine helicopters from
826 Naval Air Squadron, which disembarked from HMS
Eagle on September 20 and re-embarked on October 5.
Sembawang Air Base The installation was renamed as
Sembawang Air Base (SBAB) in 1971 upon its transfer to the Singapore Air Defence Command (SADC). Between 1971 and 1976, Sembawang served as a base for British, Australian, and New Zealand military forces, operating under the framework of the
Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA). The
SIAI-Marchetti SF.260 was developed as a successor to the older
Cessna 172K. This transition facilitated the formation of the Standards Squadron within the Flying Training School, which utilised the same aircraft for the training of pilot instructors. The initial two SF-260 aircraft were delivered to Singapore on 6 September 1971 and conducted their inaugural flight at Sembawang Air Base. In 1983, the airbase transitioned into a fully operational
rotary-wing installation with the permanent relocation of the first resident helicopter squadron,
120 Squadron, from
Changi Air Base. In the late 1990s, the expansion of Sembawang Airbase involved the acquisition of sections of Lorong Gambas and Lorong Lada Merah for the purpose of redevelopment activities. == Organisation ==