EPISODE 024: KAJI SEMULA SEJARAH TUDM

   TARIKH PENUBUHAN TUDM   

  PERLU KAJIAN SEMULA  

Sebelum aku mohon untuk menyertai kedet pada akhir tahun 1970an, aku mengumpulkan maklumat 'general knowledge' mengenai ATM sebagai persediaan untuk temuduga pegawai kedet di Kem Majidee, Johor Bahru.

Dari maklumat yang aku perolehi,  Tentera Darat ditubuhkan pada 1 Mac 1933 bersempena dengan tarikh pengambilan pertama Kompeni Percubaan Askar Melayu di Port Dickson manakala TLDM pula ditubuhkan pada 1 Julai 1952 (1), iaitu sempena  pewartaan semula Ordinan Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (MRNVR) diluluskan di Singapura.

(1) "The Malayan RNVR was reconstituted as a joint force comprising the Singapore Division and the Federation Division, by an Ordinance passed in Singapore in 1952 (Wikipedia)

Manakala TUDM ditubuhkan pada 1 Jun 1958 bersempena dengan tarikh Parlimen meluluskan Ordinan Tentera Udara DiRaja Persekutuan.

Pihak TLDM kemudiannya telah membuat penyelidikan mengenai tarikh penubuhan TLDM dan akhirnya pada tahun 1990n telah mengisytiharkan tarikh baru Hari Ulang Tahun TLDM iaitu pada 27 April 1934, iaitu sempena penubuhan Straits Settlement Naval Volunteer Forces (SSNVF).  Melalui capaian saya dalam arkib berita dari akhbar The New Strait Times (NST) TLDM masih merayakan HUT ke 36 pada 1 Julai 1988  dan  pada 27 April tahun 1989 iaitu terus kepada HUT TLDM ke 55.  Ini bermakna pada tahun 1989 TLDM telah menukar tarikh HUTnya dari 1 Julai 1952 kepada 27 Apr 1934, perbezaan selama 18 tahun (2).

Pada 27 April tahun 1989, genaplah 55 tahun Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) yang ditubuhkan atas semangat dan kegigihan anak-anak watan demi mempertahankan tanah air. TLDM mencatat sejarah tahun ini, dengan memulakan sambutan ulang tahun penubuhan pasukan itu pada tarikh yang baru. Sebelum ini TLDM meraikan sambutan ulangtahun dengan mengambil kira penubuhan pasukan bermula 1 Julai 1952 sehingga sambutan tahun lalu diraikan buat kali ke-36. Sepatutnya TLDM menyambut ulangtahun ke-37 bagi tahun ini (1989). Bagaimanapun sambutan ulangtahun itu adalah kali ke-55 pada tahun ini. Perubahan itu dibuat ekoran daripada keputusan kerajaan untuk mengiktiraf bahawa tarikh penubuhan pasukan itu bermula 27 April 1934, dan bukannya 1 Julai 1952.

Kewibawaan TLDM terserlah sejak Perang Dunia Kedua lagi kerana mempunyai rekod perkhidmatan anggota yang cemerlang. Pasukan kelasi tempatan dari The Malay Section dianggap sebagai perintis TLDM berjuang di Sri Lanka. Afrika Timur dan India bersama-sama anggota Tentera Laut Diraja British. Malayan Naval Force dikurniakan gelaran diraja pada 23 Mei 1952 dan selanjutnya diketuai sebagai Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia. Kerajaan British di Singapura menyerahkan pula TLDM kepada Kerajaan Persekutuan pada 1 Julai 1958. Malah nama Tentera Laut Diraja Malaya dipinda kepada Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia apabila tertubuhnya Malaysia pada 16 September 1963. Untuk perayaan ke-55 ini, pelbagai aktiviti diadakan seperti pameran dan persembahan disamping penerbitan buku 55 tahun TLDM.

Rujuk: www.arkib.gov.my

Jika pemilihan tarikh penubuhan Tentera Darat dan TLDM diambilkira, maka saya mempunyai pandangan bahawa tarikh penubuhan TUDM juga patut dikaji semula.  Jika penubuhan Straits Settlement Volunteer Air Force (SSVAF) diambil sebagai asas, maka tahun penubuhan TUDM sepatutnya pada tahun 1936. TUDM perlu mendapat kerjasama Arkib Negara untuk mengesahkan tarikh sebenar penubuhan TUDM.

Satu lagi fakta yang boleh digunakan sebagai asas kajian yang saya temui (dari websait www.royalark.net) ialah tarikh 1 Januari 1941.  Pada tarikh tersebut Sultan Selangor masa itu, Sultan Hisamuddin Alam Shah Alhaj dilantik menjadi 'Honorary Group Captain' atau Grup Kapten Kehormat 'Pasukan Sukarela Tentera Udara Negeri-negeri Selat (SSVAF). Ini bermakna, pada tahun 1941 sudah wujud sebuah pasukan Sukarela Tentera Udara di Tanah Melayu, sebagaimana wujudnya Pasukan Sukarela Tentera Laut Negeri-negeri Selat (SSNVR).

Saya terjumpa laman web 'malayanvolunteersgroup.org.uk' pada 09 Mei 2011. Maklumat ini boleh dijadikan asas untuk penyelidikan selanjutnya.

Secara ringkasnya catatan dalam sesawang tersebut menyebut bahawa The Straits Settlement Volunteer Air Force (SSVAF) telah ditubuhkan pada tahun 1936 dan kemudian ditukar nama menjadi Malayan Volunteer Air Force pada Ogos 1940. Anggotanya adalah dari kalangan ahli Kelab Penerbangan Singapura, Kuala Lumpur, Penang dan Perak. Mereka menerbangkan pesawat awam seperti de Havilland Tiger Moth, Leopard Moth and Rapides. Pada bulan Jun 1950 Malayan Auxilary Air Force (MAAF) ditubuhkan di Singapura (Singapore Squadron) dengan melatih  juruterbang sukarelanya mencapai standard sayap RAF. Kemudiannya dua buah skuadron lagi ditubuhkan di KL dan Penang. Lanjutan dari wujudnya Royal Malayan Air Force pada 1 Jun 1958, MAAF (Singapore Wing) semakin tidak aktif dan akhirnya dibubarkan pada 23 Sep 1960.

Pada 16 Jun 1960, Fighter Control Unit (FCU) telah dibubarkan. Pemerintah Malayan Auxiliary Air Force, Air Vice-Marshal Ronald Ramsay Rae telah mengambil tabik hormat dalam perbarisan perpisahan yang diadakan di Markas FCU di Kallang Airport. Air Vice-Marshal Rae adalah juga mantan Pegawai Pemerintah No. 224 Group, RAF. 

Tiga bulan kemudian, iaitu pada 23 Sep 1960, satu perbarisan terakhir telah diadakan di  Kallang juga dan pada kali ini sebagai merasmikan pembubaran Singapore Wing of the MAAF. Pegawai Memerintahnya, Wing Commander K. H. Tan, DFC, dan Pemerintah Skuadronnya,  Squadron Leader Jimmy K.T. Chew turut menghadiri perbarisan itu.

THE MALAYAN VOLUNTEER FORCES

As was the case with other British Colonies there were people in Malaya who realised that they should be at least partially responsible for their own defence. And so the first of the Volunteer Forces of Malaya originated in 1854 at the time of the Crimean War with the enrolment of the Singapore Volunteer Rifle Corps. With their proud motto "In Oriente Primus' Volunteers continued to serve the Crown in Malaya and the Straits Settlements at times of other national crisis. The Boer War of 1899-1902 further stimulated the Volunteer movement with the formation of the Malay States Volunteer Rifles. In 1888 the Singapore Volunteer Artillery Corps was formed. The outbreak of World War 1 in August 1914 led to an immediate and rapid increase in the enrolment of Volunteers who the following year took part in the suppression of the Sepoy Mutiny in Singapore.

As war clouds gathered in Europe in the 1930s many men of all walks of life and nationalities [European, Malay, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian] joined the Volunteer Forces. They came from all branches of the Malayan Government Service, from the Mines and Plantations, from the business communities, from the Medical Profession and from the Church. Many other civilians who would have joined the Volunteers, were prevented from doing so because they were in so-called 'reserved occupations' considered essential for the continued smooth running of the country. Whatever their background, they were motivated by a profound sense of wanting to do everything in their power to defend the Crown Colony of Malaya and her dependents.

The men remained in their civilian employment and received military training at night and on weekends. At this time the forces were reorganised along the lines of the British Territorial Army. Officers held a Governor's Commission instead of a King's Commission.

Training Camp in Kuala Kubu Bahru (1915)

The units of the force were based on the administrative area of Malaya in which the men worked and had enrolled:

The Crown Colony of the Straits Settlements (S.S.)

The Straits Settlements were administered by a British Governor ((Sir Shenton Thomas) who was also High Commissioner for the eleven Malay States. The Straits Settlements consisted of Singapore, Penang and the Province Wellesley, and Malacca (and Labuan and Christmas Island). Volunteers were organised into 4 Battalions:-

Singapore - 1st and 2nd Battalion S.S.V.F (1250 men)

Penang and Province Wellesley - 3rd Battalion S.S.V.F. (916 men)

Malacca - 4th Battalion S.S.V.F.(675 men)

Malay States VR Forces, Port Dickson(1928)

Officers of the Malacca Volunteers 1940

Pegawai dalam Malacca VR (1940)

Scottish Company, Singapore Volunteer Corps, early 1930s

Scottish Coy in Singapore VRF (1930s)

Scottish Company 1SSVF 1936

Scottish Coy 1 SSVR (1936)

The Federated Malay States (F.M.S.)

These States were ruled by Sultans, but each had a British Resident to whom they were accountable. The Federated Malay States consisted of Perak, Selangor, Negri Sembilan and Pahang. Volunteers from these States were also organised into 4 Battalions:

Perak - 1st Battalion F.M.S.V.F.

Selangor - 2nd Battalion F.M.S.V.F.

Negri Sembilan - 3rd Battalion F.M.S.V.F.

Pahang - 4th Battalion F.M.S.V.F.

There was also an F.M.S.V.F. Signals Battalion, F.M.S.V.F.Light (Artillery) Battery, F.M.S.V.F. Reserve Motor Transport Company and F.M.S.V.F. Field Ambulance units.

F.M.S.V.F. = Federated Malay States Volunteer Force. Total number of men: 5,200.

Each of these States was ruled by a Sultan and each had a British Advisor with far less influence than the British Residents of the F.M.S. These 5 States were Johore, Kedah, Kelantan, Trengganu and Perlis. Apart from Johore, they were the more northerly States with fewer Europeans and more tenuous lines of communication. Volunteers from these States were, perhaps, less well organised, again with the exception of Johore, and deployed into Local Defence Corps or Forces, rather than Battalions with a more formal command structure. Volunteers were organised into the following groups:

Johore - J.V.E. (Johore Volunteer Engineers) - 258 men.

Kedah - K.V.F. (Kedah Volunteer Force) - 571 men.

Kelantan - K.V.F. (Kelantan Volunteer Force) - 136 men.

Trengganu & Perlis - no regular Defence Force or Corps.

Officers of the Kedah Volunteer Force 1938

Officer in Kedah VR (1938)

As well as these Volunteer groupings, there were also Local Defence Corps formed in September 1940, similar to the Home Guard, throughout Malaya. There was also MAS, the Medical Auxilliary Service, and we would include as 'Volunteers' the full time, professional nurses of the Colonial Nursing Service. Some Malayan Volunteers joined:

The Malayan Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve ( M.R.N.V.R.) - 1083 men.

The Malayan Volunteer Air Force (M.V.A.F.) - 350 men.

The Armoured Car Squadrons under S.S. & F.M.S. commands. In the final days the F.M.S.V.F Armoured Car units were amalgamated and given regimental status.

The Singapore Royal Artillery and Singapore Royal Engineers.

Others received regular commissions in the two battalions of the Malay Regiment.

During the Malayan Campaign the FMSVF under Brigadier Moir acted as Lines of Communications troops defending airfields, road junctions, bridges etc. They took part in the successful delaying action at the Battle of Kampar and the FMSVF Light Battery and Armoured Cars fought with distiction both on the mainland and at Singapore.

At the surrender of Singapore there were more than 18,000 Volunteers in the armed forces,most of whom were imprisoned as military personnel, although some were imprisoned as civilians along with many non-native women and children who had not been able to escape from Singapore.

With considerable local knowledge the Volunteers were of enormous help to the thousands of captured British Forces, especially those who had only been in the Far East for a matter of weeks before capture. They knew and understood the local languages and the people, particularly those who remained loyal to the British and wanted to help them. They were acclimatised to the conditions, which must have been difficult to adjust to for the newly arrived troops - most of whom had received no training in jungle warfare.They understood the prevalent diseases such as Malaria and Dengue Fever, how best to avoid them, and the medicines that were needed to control them. They were able to barter with the local traders for food and medicine, and to set up a system of 'listening posts' for information, especially in the early months of imprisonment.

Even in Thailand, while building the infamous Burma/Siam Railway, some of the Volunteers were able to speak Thai and make contact with the local Thai / Thai Chinese population, to get the extra food and medicines so urgently needed by the starving and desperately ill prisoners of war.

When the Volunteers and other FEPOWs were finally repatriated to Britain late in 1945, and returned home to their loved ones, Europe had been at peace for over 4 months. There was a sense of purpose in the country, and a great determination to put the memories of the last six years of war behind them, so that people could get on with their lives and look forward to a brighter future.

It was into this atmosphere of optimism that the FEPOWs, including the Volunteers, returned. How devastating it must have been for them that no-one wanted to know about their ordeals and experiences, or could understand what they had been through. Indeed, most people in this country had been (and still are) totally unaware of the harrowing time the FEPOWs had endured the murders, the tortures, the deprivations, the sheer and utter brutality of an alien foe - and they didn't want to start hearing about it. In fact, the general impression was that the FEPOWs had been languishing in some kind of luxurious holiday camp in the Far East, while their kith and kin had been enduring the horrors of the Blitz on the Home Front, and the D-Day Landings in Europe.

At first, very few books were written about the horrors of the Far East War. No one wanted to re-live their unendurable experiences and for those who returned to Malaya it was devisive to do so for there were three entirely different wartime experiences: those who had stayed and become FEPOWs, those who had escaped or been evacuated, and the newcomers who were often young men who had experienced a successful war in Burma or Europe. However, in recent years more books have been written so that younger generations will know what happened to their grandfathers, uncles and cousins. A small proportion of these recent publications have been written by Volunteers, who were treated in the same way as other members of the British Forces, by the Japanese.

The Royal Singapore Flying Club

Royal Singapore Flying Club

Malayan Volunteer Air Force (MVAF) 

Formed in 1936 it was originally titled The Straits Settlements Volunteer Air Force, it was renamed in August 1940 to the MVAF operating mainly civilian aircraft such as the de Havilland Tiger Moth, Leopard Moth and Rapides.

Personnel were recruited from members of the Royal Singapore, the Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Perak flying clubs, in addition the private airline, Wearnes Air service was commandeered.

Independent administrative organisation came under the command of Group Captain R L Nunn DSO and Squadron Leader H W Chattaway AFC with the following disposition:

1.    A Flight Singapore:  F/L J C Cooke 6 DH 60 Moths, 3 Avro cadets, 3 Tiger Moths, 1 Moth minor, 1 Whitney straight, 1 Hornet moth.

2.    B Flight Singapore: F/O E W Slight 2 Dragon Rapides, 1 Dragonfly.

3.    C Flight Kuala Lumpur: F/O M T Stanley 2 Tiger Moths, 1 Leopard Moth, 1 Hawk major, 1 Miles Falcon.

4.    D Flight Ipoh: F/L H Dane 2 Avro cadets, 1 Gipsy Avro

5.    E Flight Penang: F/O H C Grant-Watson 5 Moth majors, 1 Avro tutor, 2 Tiger moths The duties of MVAF pilots were geared around providing air intelligence, ferrying dignitaries around the peninsula, carrying out black out checks on the principal cities, as well as being responsible for the perimeter security of their air field, being armed with a rifle and ammunition

On 1st December 1941, the MVAF was mobilised.

Armaments on their basically civilian & training aircraft were inadequate and hastily improvised in readiness for war.

On 7th December, 1941 a Catalina on seaward reconnaissance piloted by Flying Officer Pat Bedell was shot down by Japanese fighters in the Gulf of Siam and he is probably the first casualty of the Far East conflict, a few hours before the strike on Pearl Harbour.

When not flying the men of the MVAF, issued with a rifle and 50 rounds of ammunition were required for aerodrome defence duties.

Despite the pressing attacks and the considerable ground gained by the Japanese forces the MVAF flew on hundreds of missions.

A batch of 51 Hurricanes which had arrived in Singapore on January 13th 1942 were hastily unpacked and in the middle of assembly when a Japanese air patrol spotted them and destroyed all of them.

The MVAF also played a critical role in dropping messages to the scattered units of the retreating British army. This was not only a danger from marauding Japanese fighters but from demoralised British troops who also fired upon them believing the Japanese to have air supremacy.

With the fall of Singapore imminent the MVAF were transferred to the Dutch East Indies. The Japanese meanwhile were beginning to close in and again the MVAF were ordered to evacuate. This time the remaining personnel and some 2000 RAF & RAAF personnel embarked on the SS Kota Gede, arriving in Colombo on March 6th 1942. ( S/L Chattaway, F/L Dane & F/L Harvey having elected to remain in Java with their aircraft).

Of the 45 aircraft of the MVAF on December 1st 1941, only 5 survived. Several men of the MVAF made their own escape arrangements reaching Australia where they promptly joined the RAAF.

Nominal Roll of Officers and Men 1939

Squadron Leader DSE Vines

Flying Officers.  JA Allen, E C Whiteley, WT Cherry, T Carter, JM Hart, GEM Jones, TJL Watkins, AP Craigie, TAD Hewan, JV West, SD Taylor, RFC Markham, WR Logan, SJ Beattie

Pilot Officer WB Dobree, Sergeant CWR Sculfor

Air Craftman Class 2s: JFL Cowin, NWG Hill, WA Ball, SJ Rand, RV Hanson, R Blaik, C Short, WG Harris, J Speelman, SWG Edlin, FH Blake, WH Dingle, DM Walker, DE Rintoul, F Jacques, FFL Morgan, AG Beohm, S Fuller-Sandys, A Maxwell, MS Robinson, RFS Young, FEAB Sewell, JF Barraclough, FL Kennedy, RH Pickard, MW Gulliford, WJ Furneaux, AE Ohlsen

Casualties

1.   Flying Officer Patrick Edwin Bedell, 7th December 1941 (possibly the first casualty in the Far Eastern theatre, killed before the strike on Pearl Harbour)

2.   Flight Sergeant Trevethen, 18th December 1941

3.   Flight Sergeant H E Cleaverley, 18th December 1941

4.   Pilot Officer Noel W F Paul, 16th February, 1942

5.   Flight Lieutenant Henry Dane DSO, 5th December 1942

 MALAYAN AUXILLARY AIR FORCE

MAAF (Singapore Squadron) was formed in 1950 to train volunteers to fly to RAF wings standard. There were two other squadrons, one at Kuala Lumpur and the other at Penang. Flying training was carried out at weekends and this took place at RAF Tengah. Initially, the Singapore Squadron was equipped with four Tiger Moths and these were supplemented with four North American Harvards a type which was to remain in MAAF service up to 1957. During 1957, MAAF saw the introduction of a more modern training aircraft, namely the de Havilland Chipmunk, which was to replace the Tiger Moths and Harvards.

In 1954, the RAF conducted a recruitment exercise for volunteers to serve in the Fighter Control Unit as Fighter Plotters and Radar Operators. Their role was somewhat quite similar to those personnel who manned the "CHAIN HOME" (CH) System in U.K. They helped to man the RAF Control and Reporting System for the defence of the island. The ground syllabus was taught at the HQ in Beach Road on two evenings a week whilst a "live" training session was conducted on alternate Sundays at RAF Tengah.

A two weeks Annual Camp was arranged each year. This gave the opportunity for the volunteers to have two weeks full time training. There were occasions when the Singapore Squadron went up country to join up with the Kuala Lumpur & Penang Squadrons for their Annual Camp.

On 16 June 1960, the Fighter Control Unit was disbanded. The Commander, Malayan Auxiliary Air Force, Air Vice-Marshall Ronald Ramsay Rae, O.B.E. took the salute at the farewell parade held at the unit's headquarters at the old Kallang Airport. Air Vice-Marshall Ramsay Rae was also the Air Officer Commanding, 224 Group, R.A.F.

Three months later on 23 September 1960, a final parade was held at Kallang  again, this time to mark the disbandment of the Singapore Wing of the MAAF. Wing Commander K.H. Tan, D.F.C., (see photo on the right) the unit's Commanding Officer and Squadron Leader Jimmy K.T. Chew came in for special mention.

Wing Commander Tan was one of the 114 Singapore wartime pilots who were sent to Canada under the Commonwealth Training Scheme. Shot down over France in  June 1944 after the Normandy D-Day Landings, he was captured but escaped within eight months and made his way to England. His operations with the R.A.F. won him the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Squadron Leader Jimmy Chew also saw service with the R.A.F. during the war. He was a prisoner of the Japanese in Java for three and a half years. Who do you think was in the same prison camp with him ? It was none other than Air Vice-Marshall Ramsay Rae.

The disbandment of the Singapore Wing brings to a close the short but colorful existence of this volunteer organisation.

1950. Formation of MAAF (Singapore Squadron) took place in June.  Flying training was conducted in four de Havilland Tiger Moths by RAF qualified flying instructors (QFIs) from RAF Tengah. The Squadron's maintenance and ground crews were trained at Beach Road as well as at RAF Tengah.

1951. Four Harvard Trainers and three Spitfire Mk.24s were acquired.  Singapore was proclaimed a City of the British Commonwealth on 22 September and MAAF was one of the detachments that formed the guards of honour which was inspected by the Governor, Sir Franklin Charles Gimson.

1952: The three Spitfires were withdrawn due to age and structural limitations.

1954: MAAF acquires two more Harvards, bringing the total number of Harvards to six. In accordance with the National Service Ordinance, part-time national service was introduced in March. The Royal Air Force conducted a campaign to get more recruits to join theFighter Control Unit.

10-24 July 1955: Annual Summer Camp was held at Telok Paku for both Squadron and FCU.

1957: The Tiger Moths and Harvards were phased out and replaced by four DHC-T.10 Chipmunks.

August 1957: The FCU's Annual Summer Camp was held at the old Kallang Airport.

5 October 1957: Pilot Officers B.S. Lim and Y.T. Liok attained their Wings.

3 June 1959: Singapore gained full self-government.

1960: The final Annual Summer Camp for the FCU was held at the old Kallang Airport.

16 June 1960:  The Fighter Control Unit was disbanded.

10-27 August 1960:  The final Annual Summer Camp for the Squadron was held at              the old Kuala Lumpur Airport.

23 September 1960 -  MAAF (Singapore Wing) was disbanded.

MAAF (Singapore Squadron) consisted of two Units :

the Aircraft Squadron (the flying element)

the Fighter Control Unit (radar air defence element).

In the Aircraft Squadron, pilot training was carried out at RAF Tengah by R.A.F. QFIs (Qualified Flying Instructors), comprising Jack Challinor, Van Cuylenburg, Eddie Grant, Eddie Davies and Doug Freeman who went on to serve for a short while with RMAF when MAAF was disbanded. Challinor went on to command the Queen's Flight based at Oxford, UK whilst Van Cuylenburg went into business after retiring from the RAF.

MAAF pilots who attained their 'Wings' were :

1.   Jimmy Chew

2.   Peter Hee

3.   Robert Lau Kuo Kwong

4.   V. Kandasamy

5.   David  Leong

6.   Lim Ban Siong

7.   Liok Yew Teck

8.   Sulaiman bin Sujak

After attending the RAF College at Cranwell, Sulaiman bin Sujak graduated as a QFI . Whilst in the RAF, he also flew as a Hunter pilot. Sulaiman later returned to Malaysia in September 1965 as a Squadron Leader. He rose to greater heights and became the Air Vice Marshal of the RMAF.

Other MAAF pilots also did notably well after the disbandment in 1960 :

Robert Lau became the Director of Manpower, MINDEF, and was also the Head of its Data Processing Department in the late 60's with the rank of Colonel. He also managed to get in some flying with the newly formed RSAF and checked out on the BAC Strikemaster. He returned to CPF as its General Manager in the early 70's.

Kandasamy flew as a Captain with Malaysia-Singapore Airlines (MSA) and later SIA.

Liok Yew Teck and David Leong both joined the MSA stable and flew as Captains.

Lim Ban Siong served in the PDF as a doctor and held the rank of Captain.

The RAF personnel at Tengah also provided training to MAAF technicians and mechanics in the servicing of the aircrafts.

REF: WEBSPACE.WEBRING.COM

Contribution:

UNARMED, UNESCORTED & UNWANTED a MVAF

by Rosemary Fell.

I have taken this title for my talk this evening on the Malayan Volunteer Air Force, from an article by Roy Humphries in an edition of the ‘FlyPast’ magazine.

The MVAF may not have been in the front line of air defence – such as it was – in Malaya and Singapore between 1940 and 42, yet it filled an invaluable niche in the area of reconnaissance, communication, and transport of military personnel before and during the short Malayan Campaign, thus relieving the hard pressed Royal Air Force of these duties.  However, just as other Volunteer Forces during the Campaign were undervalued and their expertise ignored until it was too late, so, too, was that of the MVAF. 

How and when was the MVAF established?  To find this out and to understand its background, and composition, one has to go back to the advent of the Flying Clubs.

In 1928, the Singapore Flying Club was established, using light seaplanes as there were no aerodromes or air strips.  Later this evolved into the Royal Singapore Flying Club.  In October 1930 the first airfield was constructed at Seletar, which was taken over by the RAF Far East Flight. 

From 1936 onwards, as aerodromes were constructed on the mainland peninsular of Malaya, flying clubs were formed in Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh (the Perak Club) and Penang.  These clubs were subsidised by their respective Governments, but a condition of membership was that all members automatically became liable for active service in Malaya in a time of crisis.  Thus the strong tradition of ‘Volunteering’, which had been first established in 1854 in Singapore, with the enrolment of the Singapore Volunteer Rifles, was to be maintained.  

As well as these flying clubs becoming established in Malaya, in 1936 the Straits Settlements Volunteer Air Force (SSVAF) was set up in Singapore at Seletar, at a time when the Volunteering movement was again on the increase, as war clouds gathered in Europe.  One condition of enrolment in the SSVAF was that all flying personnel had to have training up to civil “A” licence stage in a flying club before being allowed to join.  Local Singapore accountant Mowbray Garden said, “My one aim was to get into the SSVAF with a commission.  This I did, passing out in the final test in a Gypsy Moth equipped with floats instead of wheels.”  Flt. Lt. M. Garden went on to fly for the RAF during the Campaign, and had a very distinguished record.

When war broke out in Europe in September 1939, all suitable personnel from the SSVAF were absorbed into the RAF and the SSVAF was disbanded.  The remainder of the personnel was later absorbed into the Malayan Volunteer Air Force which was set up at Kallang in August 1940, as the result of an amendment made by the Straits Settlements Legislative Council, which had established the SSVAF.  Other personnel for the MVAF were recruited from the Royal Singapore Flying Club, the Kuala Lumpur Flying Club, the Perak Flying Club, the Penang Flying Club and from a private airline known as Wearnes Air Services.  

At the same time, in Singapore in 1940, a Government Flying Training School was initiated, with the newly formed MVAF supplying and maintaining training aircraft and one instructor.  Three other instructors were supplied by the RAF.  110 younger men from the Malayan flying clubs, who joined this training school, having passed the RAF medical test and end of course exams, went on to advanced training schools in Canada, South Africa and elsewhere in the world, and became RAF pilots.

The older members of the flying clubs and commercial pilots, who for various reasons of age or slight physical defect were not eligible to join the RAF, became the backbone of the MVAF.  Between them they had hundreds of hours of flying experience, but before they received their “wings” even they had to go through a course of training.

220 men served in the MVAF, including 40 pilots and their observers.  As with the other Volunteer Forces in Malaya, the MVAF included men from all local races and creeds as well as Europeans.  There were 42 Chinese, 5 Danes, 14 Malays, 14 Eurasians, 15 Indians/Singhalese.  The MVAF was a self-contained force and independently administered - able to maintain its own aircraft with its own fully qualified engineers.  Its Commanding Officer was Group Captain R.L. Nunn DSO who in civilian life was Director of the PWD.  He was also appointed Director of Civil Aviation, Malaya.

my main reference: malayanvolunteersgroup.org.uk

Keratan berita:

October 25, 1960. On this day, the Royal Air Force (RAF) handed its M$15 million Kuala Lumpur station to the Royal Malayan Air Force (RMAF). The gift of the base, with earlier financial assistance of providing aircraft and training for pilots and technicians, had saved the Federation Government many millions of dollars, relieving the country of a considerable financial burden at a critical stage of her development.

British High Commissioner Sir Geofroy Tory said wistfully, "For the RAF, this is inevitably a moment of sadness and nostalgia." Since the War (WW2), thousands of RAF, RAAF and RNZAF officers and men have been stationed at the base, centre of anti-terrorist operations.

Extracted from The New Straits Times
15 November 1999

KUALA LUMPUR, 2 April 2013: 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Berhad) has awarded a RM2.1 billion contract to develop eight sites in the relocation of Pangkalan Udara Kuala Lumpur which will be transformed into Bandar Malaysia.

Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT) will undertake the development through its wholly-owned subsidiary Perbadanan Perwira Harta Malaysia (PPHM

The relocation involves various units of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), Royal Artillery Regiment (31 RAD) and the air wing of the Royal Malaysian Police (RMP) from the old Sungai Besi airport.

PPHM is the turnkey contractor to design and build installations at the eight locations including three new sites – RMAF base in Sendayan, Negeri Sembilan; 31 RAD base in Kajang, Selangor and RMP air wing base in Subang, Selangor. The rest are in Subang; Kuantan, Pahang; Butterworth, Penang; Gong Kedak, Terengganu and Ipoh, Perak.

The land in Sendayan for the RMAF base and in Subang for the RMP air wing base were recently purchased by 1MDB. The strategic development company will also be contributing funds towards the improvement and upgrading of specialised equipments as part of the relocation exercise.

PPHM is expected to provide opportunities for local contractors to participate in the development of the relocation sites. 

1MDB Real Estate Sdn Bhd Chief Executive Officer Dato’ Azmar Talib said: “As an agency under the Ministry of Defence, LTAT is in a strong position to ensure that the relocation process will not jeopardize national security.”  

He added: “They also best understand the needs of the force’s personnel and therefore will be able to ensure that the welfare of the staff and their families are taken care of,” he added.   

The new facilities are scheduled for completion by September 2016.

Construction work on Bandar Malaysia, a strategic development project led by 1MDB as the Master Developer, can only start after the new facilities are developed and relocation completed.

However, several preliminary works have started, including the Bandar Malaysia International Master Plan Design Competition which is almost concluded. 1MDB will announce the winner soon.

Bandar Malaysia aims to promote liveability and sustainability as key development components and will set the tone for future cities

It will be a mixed-use development that embodies good transit-oriented design principles, promotes community vibrancy and provides public spaces as well as amenities.

With the transformation, the old Sungai Besi airport will be a game changer for the third time, catalysing new growth

In 1956, it served as the first international airport, opening up the aviation, travel, tourism and hospitality industries

It was also the birthplace of the RMAF from where it grew to become an ultra modern air force.

com

TERIMA KASIH