Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): Almost every day, the residents of Sengkang GRC are forced to pause what they are doing as military jets scream past overhead. What is worse, the location of the town, close to the northeastern edge of the island, means that they must endure the noise for an extended period as the planes circle round again after making a U-turn to avoid entry into Malaysian airspace. Such disturbances are especially disruptive, given how an increasingly larger number of Singaporeans now work from home, at least part of the time. Some residents even suggest that the frequency of such incidents may number as many as seven flights an hour.
Over the years, I and my Parliamentary colleagues have implored RSAF to consider various alternatives to their overflights, to cluster take-offs more, to consider alternative flight paths, to take breaks in the early mornings or during exam periods, and to respect quiet hours. The responses, while lengthy and varied, have largely retained the same thrust that the Air Force needs to maintain operational readiness for the good of national defence and that there will eventually be relief after the decommissioning of Paya Lebar Air Base sometime in 2030.
In the meantime, however, our residents continue to experience disruptions to their daily activities. Technology, however, has now offered a tested solution, fin line nozzles that can be incorporated into engine design, much like dimples on a golf ball. This advance in aerospace technology offers potentially quieter jet engines with minimal reductions in performance. Other technologies, like micro vortex generators, acoustic liners and other types of modifications to engine nozzles, also appear to hold promise.
In an earlier Parliamentary Question response, Minister Ng Eng Hen indicated that RSAF will continue to monitor such technologies. Will the Ministry be able to provide an update on its monitoring efforts? Are there any plans to devote a budget toward researching and incorporating noise reduction technologies into military aircraft here? While I understand that defensive capability and safety considerations should always remain priorities for the Armed Forces, surely the impact that achieving such capabilities have on the daily life of Singaporeans should matter, too.
The Senior Minister of State for Defence (Mr Heng Chee How): Maintaining operational effectiveness is crucial and this does not always come easy. With respect to Assoc Prof Jamus Lim’s question on aircraft noise, MINDEF had previously shared with Members how local flight training is critical to our pilots’ continued proficiency and operational readiness, and the measures RSAF has taken to reduce public inconveniences arising from aircraft noise. For example, where possible, local flying is conducted over waters rather than land and avoids residential areas during take-off, landing and transit to-and-from training areas. The RSAF also flies at higher altitudes and lower airspeeds over land, to minimise noise to housing estates.
The Air Force also adjusts its training tempo during selected periods, such as the national exams. And this is over and above the training that we conduct overseas, which obviously does not result in noise over Singapore.
While we are aware of experimental noise-reducing aerospace technology, such as fin-lined nozzles, engine insulation and aircraft fuselage shaping, there are, to our knowledge, currently no aircraft manufacturers that have certified or successfully incorporated the use of these technologies in the manufacturing of military aircraft. Our Air Force will continue to monitor the development of such technologies and whether any can meet the operational requirements in a cost-effective way.
So, I want to reassure Assoc Prof Jamus Lim that we are doing our best in order to ensure that we can defend our skies, protect our country and, at the same time, minimise the inconvenience to Singaporeans.
Ministry of Defence
3 March 2025
https://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/#/sprs3topic?reportid=budget-2583
Office of the Leader of the Opposition 