The airport was built from 1952 to 1955, and opened on 20 August that year by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, Alan Lennox-Boyd. The architect for the project was J. J. Bryan, a public works engineer with experience constructing airports in Malaya and India. It was a hub for Malayan Airways at this time, and the airline had its first flight outside Southeast Asia in 1958, using a DC-4 leased from Qantas, flying to Hong Kong. Turboprops were introduced over the next few years, and the name was changed to Malaysian Airways. In 1962 a joint RAF/Singapore civil Air Traffic Control service was formed to provide Military cover for Air Defence. During that time Britannia aircraft of British Eagle provided transport for the British military. Comet 4C's were common traffic and the new VC10 arrived reducing flight time, rather than the 24hrs-with stops- of the Britannia. In 1966, the company focused more on Singapore, buying Boeing 707s, headquartering itself in that country, and renaming itself Malaysia-Singapore Airlines – with a notable fluorescent yellow livery. Its primary hub became Paya Lebar, and services began to reach out further into North Asia. From 1979 to 1980, British Airways, in conjunction with Singapore Airlines, began supersonic Concorde services from London's Heathrow Airport, to Paya Lebar Singapore. Malaysia-Singapore Airlines was dissolved in 1972; Malaysia Airlines and Singapore Airlines were formed – the latter keeping all the 707s; and Singapore Airlines remained at Paya Lebar. But passenger numbers rose from 1.7 million to 4 million between 1970 and 1975. The airport was constrained by housing estates and although some work was done to keep it operational in the meantime, construction began on the present Singapore International Airport at Changi in 1975, opening in 1981. Paya Lebar then closed to civil traffic, and Changi took over Paya Lebar's airport codes.
Conversion to military use
Paya Lebar began to be gradually converted into a military air-force base from late 1967 onwards. During that year, an Air Movement Centre was constructed to handle passengers and cargo arriving on Republic of Singapore Air Force, and Ministry of Defencecharter flights and foreign military aircraft. The original terminal building, maintenance hangar and control tower are retained. Access to terminal and hangars are off-limits closed off by a wired fence. It became a complete military airbase in 1981 when Singapore Changi Airport was opened and was subsequently renamed as Paya Lebar Air Base in the same year.
Paya Lebar Air Base
The air base currently houses aircraft such as the C-130 Hercules and two squadrons of F-15SG Strike Eagles. The flying squadrons are:
PLAB was chosen to host Air Force One for the 12 June 2018 North Korea–United States summit between President Donald Trump and ChairmanKim Jong-un. Although early media reports speculated that Kim's Ilyushin Il-62 would land at PLAB, his plane landed at Singapore Changi Airport instead. On 6 June, Singapore's aviation authorities announced that temporary airspace restrictions will be put in place for parts of 11–13 June. Aircraft arriving at Singapore Changi Airport will be required to reduce speed and some restrictions are placed on runway use. Aviators were also informed to stay away from Paya Lebar Air Base as it is a facility used by US presidents on their previous visits to Singapore. Kim landed in Singapore Changi Airport on 10 June. After the summit, Trump and Air Force One left Singapore via PLAB at 6:30 pm Singapore Time.
The RSAF maintains the Air Force Museum, which is open to the public and showcases the air force's history and capabilities. The museum is located at 400 Airport Road, Singapore 534234 beside the airbase. It went through an upgrade and update of the exhibits in 2015.
RSAF Open House
The RSAF Open House is an air show that is usually held at Paya Lebar Air Base. The Open House was most-recently held on 19 – 22 May 2016 and more than 220,000 people attended on the two public days of 21 – 22 May.
Legacy
The old passenger terminal building and control tower still stands, though they now house air force units and are off-limits to the public. Nevertheless, much of the interior still remains intact and is almost completely preserved from the time it was first built. The road which used to lead to the old passenger terminal is also still known as Airport Road.
Future
The airbase will be relocated from 2030 onwards. Expansion works are ongoing at Tengah Air Base and Changi Air Base to prepare for the eventual relocation of RSAF's assets after the closure of the airbase.
