Mersing

 

 

Mersing located at the east coast is a beautiful place, a gateway for tourism to the island of Tioman and the neighbouring smaller islands. The main attraction is diving owing to crystal clear waters and beautiful coral reefs. The tropical islands with white sandy beaches with swaying palm trees gave the assurance of an idealistic environment away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

A historical event occurred at North of Tioman just off Kuantan during the Second World War, two British capital warships were attacked and sunk by Japanese bombers flying from Saigon. The date was 10^th December 1941 three days after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbour. The target the new 729 ft battleship HMS Prince of Wales of 35,000 tons launched only in April and the 794 ft older battle-cruiser HMS Repulse of 32,000 tons built in 1916 and re-modernized between the years 1936-1939. The two giants were caught without friendly air cover and sent to the bottom of the sea with heavy loss of lives. In that battle the Japanese had proven Billy Mitchell’s theory that battleships could be bombed from the air and that air power could dominate sea power. Consequently the Allied Naval supremacy disintegrated and the Imperial Japanese Navy became Masters of the sea. Till this day the watery grave is being preserved by the British Royal Navy as a war memorial and marked by a white ensign attached to a buoy fluttering beneath the waves.

When we were booted out of Desaru on the 4^th December 1997 I flew my Challenger II alone to Mersing. I remember that evening having been cleared, took off at 1705 hours and climbed to 1,000 ft, trekking the coastline heading north. After passing the area of Kampong Sedili Besar I encountered low lying clouds and obtained permission to climb to 2,000 ft. When above the clouds I had that strange feeling with the whitish fluffy cumulus vapors suspending below me and all around over a large area. It was an amazing sight as I was trying to gage, to understand, appreciate nature and grasps the magnitude of God’s Creation. The clouds obstructed my view below and for a moment I had no idea of my exact positioning. I just had to rely on my compass bearing and my watch for timing. After some time I observed an opening in the clouds so I penetrated through and found to my relief the coastline directly below.

I identified a fishing village of Tanjong Leman with Pulau Sibu to my right and was happy to know that I was dead on track. Soon I had welcome view of the grassy airfield of Mersing in sight with a solitary open-sided shelter as a waiting hall. I wanted to land immediately so reduced power to descend and lining up with the runway #33 I crossed the mouth of the river, cleared the perimeter fence and touched down smoothly. The trip had taken one hour and forty minutes landing before the sunset. I look forward to our new “home” and hope that our stay would be a happy and a longer one. I could see that the airfield was in excellent condition and properly maintained. The grass being trimmed, with perimeter markings laid out accordingly and all around fencing to prevent intrusion by wild animals.

Airfield specification:

Name: Mersing

Identifier: Whisky Mike Alfa Uniform (WMAU)

Location: Latitude 02 23 00 North

Longtitude 103 52 00 East

Runway heading: 15/33

Length: 500 m

Width 30 m

Surface: grassy

Status: un-control

Navigation Aids: VOR station next to the airfield, north side.

Yes there were wild animals with occasional appearances some wild boars roaming in groups, huge iguanas the local monitor lizards, snakes and variety of monkeys. The monkeys were abundant, daring, mischievous and a damned nuisance; actually they are a pain in the butt. Our building was next to the fringe of the forested belt that ran a long way south parallel to the coast. We were the only frontier outpost therefore quite exposed and obviously became the subject or the object of their curiosity. I believed when nobody was around they came in to scout around.

One incident Capt. Chung and I could not forget when one morning we were preparing breakfast. We had to toast our bread inside and brought it out to the veranda. The Captain had just bought a jug of honey and laid it on the table. We went inside to toast some more bread and when we came back to the veranda we were shocked everything had vanished. The table cleared by the marauding monkeys, they took everything and retreated back to the trees. I could see Captain’s face flushed with anger cursing the intruders with obscene language even though he knew they could not understand. I had never seen him in such a rage; it was an act of war and we promised retaliation with vengeance. That afternoon we went to Mersing Town to shop for armament. I bought a catapult, an improved version with gun-type handgrip and with a foresight. It would be my answer to the problem and began training earnestly thus improving my shooting skills considerably. For ammunition the stones pebbles were plentiful with endless supply from the nearby beach.

From the veranda we imposed an arch of our “exclusion zone” ranging within the slingshot distance and extended further to cover our store and the hanger areas at the back. Our strong-arm tactics acted as a deterrent to any intruders and any primate found within would be shot without any questions asked. It was time for action to enforce our territorial boundary. The shooting war had begun and our message was simple and clear “No more monkey business allowed”. We had some successes I once shot down a monkey within the exclusion zone. It fell directly into the pond but managed to swim out and made it’s desperate escape into the bush.

The veranda with the squirrel’s tree on the left

We had a tree next to the veranda and we made a wooden platform wedged in between the two trunks as a dining mount for the squirrels. In the morning we would leave some pieces of bread for them. In the beginning they would only come down after we stayed clear. Later on they had been accustomed to the routine and could sense that we meant no harm. They became more daring and finally ended up eating from the palm of our hands. However we had to be present for the distribution of food otherwise in our absent the monkey came down and took control. They were a selfish lot and took everything for themselves, no such thing as sharing not in their thinking.

One day a big male wild boar with menacing tusks paid a courtesy call appearing at our main gate and waited to be ushered in. It stood there for some time I supposed summing up the situation before it decided to walk away leisurely. We had two dogs named Browny and Blacky; we thought they would challenge the intruder but obviously they were so frightened that they had retreated with their tails between their legs into hiding.

Another incident a huge iguana took sweet time crossing the airfield when spotted by one of our Malay carpenters. He joking pointed out to us saying “buaya” meaning crocodile owing to the huge size as it struggled on slowly on it’s four legs and dragging it’s long tail. When cornered it would emit a sort of a hissing sound in a defensive mode as a warning to stay clear.

Joseph Cave a New Zealander pilots the crop-duster based at the airfield. The sleek aircraft had a powerful turbo-prop engine and could carry about 2 tons of fertilizer.

The type model “Cresco” with New Zealand registration number Zulu Kilo dash Lima Tango Quebec. He told me that his fuel consumption around 200 liters per hour; Wow! what a guzzler. His daily routine was to fly to work in the morning and return at the end of the day. He was spraying the Felda oil palm plantations all over the country. A familiar sight as he appears overhead on his return and dive in for the landing with ease. When I saw him I would remarked “Ah the Spitfire is back” At times when he found the monkeys sitting on the fence, he would position his aircraft with the back towards them and blew them off the fence. We had influenced him into partnership in our war against the apes.

Joe starting up his “Cresco”crop-duster

One day he took me with him, we lifted off from threshold # 33 and shot into the sky over the airfield. As it attained sufficient height he did a wingover and dived towards the sea. There was a lone fisherman in his native sampan just off shore and we decided to surprise him. So Dave flew his aircraft very low; we were more to the sea along the coastline and well below tree top level. The fisherman must have got a shock of his life to suddenly see an aircraft heading directly for him. We flew over him and continued on and before us the hill right ahead seemed to grow larger and larger in frightening proportion. He kept on and I had almost frozen with fear when he held the stick back and the aircraft zoomed up vertically and did a right wingover. I saw that sinister smile on his face revealing that he had intended to have me wet my pants. We returned to base and he landed as usual with great ease. In a return gesture I offered to take him up in my “Challenger II” he declined I supposed he did not trust me. To him my micro-light was a toy plane, too flimsy to warrant a risk.

Occasionally we would have visitors dropping by like Gautier in his red Piper Tri-pacer, Marcus in his Robin aerobatic aircraft, Piper Warriors from Singapore Youth Flying Club or Eagle from Melaka. Marcus usually on his departure would oblige us with some aerobatic performances as a farewell gesture. We were really impressed with his loops and rolls.

On the 11^th October I took off at 1540 hours for my test flight when I flew Capt. Osman in my “Challenger II”. That day had been rather windy and a lot of turbulence from inland owing to hills nearby and so I took my aircraft out to sea. There at least the wind was constant and we went through a series of maneuvers, climbs, turns, figure of 8 etc…

We flew for half-an-hour before he decided to return to base and later told that I had passed my test for the category of aircraft type and for Assistant Flying Instructor. It had been a rewarding day for me. By then our Micro-light Pilot Licence (blue card) has been scrapped and replaced by Internationally recognised Malaysian Private Pilot’s Licence (PPL)

At Mersing we operated two locally made replica of the Mx II Sports from Seremban, a Buckeye powered parachute that is a powered buggy with a parachute and my faithful Challenger II. Our normal daily routine was to take off in the morning and fly to northwards to Mersing Town and back. Sometimes we flew south halfway towards Tanjong Leman. The scenery was fantastic the white sandy beaches all along the coastline double up as a natural improvise emergency landing ground. It was wide enough especially at low tide and hard enough to take our micro-light. We had observed the Malaysian army driving their 3-tonner trucks along the beach; a clear indication of feasibility for our micro-light. Occasionally we would make practice run to simulate force landing to boost up confidence.

The Kampong Seri Pantai is located near the airfield and the locals were really friendly and helpful. In fact we got our carpenters from there to renovate the open shelter to include office, classroom, veranda, living quarters and a hanger at the airfield. We were flying for Gucharan Singh under Flyright Air Sports. The boss and his wife lived in a rented bungalow at nearby. A little further some Malay entrepreneurs operated the resorts where we recommended our students to put up for their weekend stay. One such example was the J Boat and Fishing Resort operated by Ghazali. His setup was conducive, blending into the kampong environment with clusters of wooden houses built down the

slope to the beach. An impressive main dining hall stood at the lower base and a small swimming pool for the guests to cool down. Usually on our return trip we would “buzz over” the resort to draw attention. The children would respond by coming out to cheer and wave their hands wildly.

In the 22^nd May 1998 I probably made history when I flew my Challenger II micro-light to the three nearby off shore islands of Pulau Besar, Tengah and Kechil. I had arranged Capt. Chung to provide escort in the rescue boat and keep an eye on me in my attempt. If he did not see a speck in the sky he was to rush immediately to the spot as I might end up swimming. I took off at 0820 hours and flew across the stretch of water to Pulau Kechil first, then to Tengah and finally to Pulau Besar. The islands were really beautiful with white sandy beaches, swaying palms and crystal clear waters. At the pier some people was scuba diving and some snorkeling. Those at the chalet came out to wave at me as I flew very low at tree top level. What more can you expect and it was so tempting that I wished I could join them. I returned after an hour ten minutes flight, it had been a very good experience and built up confidence. I hope that I can fly to Pulau Tioman some day.

Then two days later we took off in the morning intending to fly to Ayer Papan further north of Mersing. The Buckeye powered parachute took off first, followed by Singh in the Mx II then Capt. Chung in another Mx II; my Challenger II last. The weather did not look good and as we were approaching Mersing Town, I noticed that dark clouds rapidly building up inland and heading our direction. That was a tell tale indication of an impending storm. Capt. Chung who was ahead of me suddenly turn around and heading

back to base. I immediately followed suit and was trailing right behind him at full power. The earlier two were way ahead and we were sure that they would be caught in the storm. We landed just in time before the rain poured down.

Later we got a call from boss that he had crash-landed north of Mersing Town at a place called Tengulu Laut. The axle had broken and that we were to bring a replacement.

As for the Buckeye powered parachute it had landed safely at a vacant land further north.

We collected our tools, the spare axle and proceeded to Tengulu Laut by car. Arriving there we found the Mx II at the beach with the said damaged. After working a while we managed to make good the repairs and boss was able to take off for the return trip.

The 9^th & 10^th June I took my son Ian up for training flight for over an hour doing the straight & level and turns exercises. I tried to instill interest upon him but he did not appear too keen and I did not want to push him. It had turned out that he was more interested in “motor cross” as at that time he was riding a KTM scrambler; an off-road bike. Once he had a go at the track of the “Camel Adventure” an off road dirt track for the 4-wheel drive vehicles at Desaru.

At Mersing, Ian posing in the cockpit my ‘Challenger II’

I myself have a strong passion for motorcycles but only for road bikes. I bought my first bike “Triumph Tiger Cub” 200cc in 1959. And I nervously rode it home avoiding the main roads, taking side roads and small lanes to reach home safely.

My earlier bikes were English-made such as Norton, Triumph and BSA but later choices were Japanese-made Suzuki and Honda. I had several changes I think about seven and the considered most powerful at that time was Norton Dominator 99 (650cc). It was great you could feel the acceleration as you open up the throttle. However my favourite bike was the Suzuki GSX-400R racer and sometimes gone overboard making the highway a speedway.

Ian with his scrambler Author’s Suzuki

And believe it or not, one night I nearly hit a wild boar that ran across the highway; it flashed passed my high beam and was a near miss. It was a hair-raising shocking experience as I had never expected it. The farthest road journey I had made was to the Malayan/Thai border town of Padang Besar and it was in 1974 on a Lambretta scooter; it took 2 days.

Now back to flying on the 17^th August I took up my wife Josephine and flew coastal to show her the scenic view of the area. The weather had been calm, therefore the flight was smooth and I tried to convince her that it was safe. She was not impressed as her idea of flying is in a wide body aircraft with comfortable reclining seat and a stewardess to serve you. Not in a cramped narrow cockpit of a flimsy micro-light where one had to squeeze into.

Visiting aircraft an ‘Eagle and a ‘Robin’

A visiting Piper Warrior from Singapore Youth Flying Club

On the 6^th September another accident as boss was taking a student up by the name of Than Myint, a Burmese national working with the Singapore Polytechnic. They had taken off from the Runway #15 and climbing when suddenly the engine went dead. The locally made Mx II with poor gliding quality ploughed into the ground at the other end of the runway. It beat up a cloud of dust so much so that Alvin, Than Myint’s wife and myself were really shocked. And as the dust settled down the two figures were seen suspended motionless by their harnesses. The Mx II was upright in a vertical position with the tail end bend inward like a scorpion. We thought the worse had happened and rushed immediately to the scene. However as we got nearer we were relief when we saw movements. We helped to disconnect the harness to free the both of them. Luckily for them not much for physical injuries as they suffered only minor cuts and bruises. I would say moral and psychological injury especially for the pilot. Anyway it was a very fortunate day for the two to be alive.

By early November business had been very bad as there were no new intake of students. The husband and wife team responsible for marketing failed miserably in their job. Finally Singh told us that they had no more money to continue and had to terminate our services. I believed that Capt. Chung did collect his salary and returned to Klang his home town. There was no money for me and I saw no point hanging around without salary and nothing to do. I then decided to return to Singapore and get a permanent job back to the Marine Industry.

First thing to do was to fly my plane back to Batu Pahat where I still had a hanger so on the 11^th November I prepared to leave. At about 0730 hours I took off from Mersing,

Singh and his wife were there to send me off. I circled overhead for one last time to bid farewell and headed inland. I flew across a part of dense jungle, giant trees towering high with huge green foliage spread at the top. The whole area was green except for pockets of small villages or kampongs.

I spotted the Kluang Road and flew FIR (not on instrument) I Follow Road as a safety precaution because on either side of the road there land was flat for farming. In case of an emergency at least I would have a spot for landing. There is a Military base with airfield at Kluang but I was informed that they were not flying that day and that I had free passage through.

I read that during the Second World War the British had Brewster Buffaloes fighters stationed at Kluang. However the lumbering Buffaloes were no match for the invading Japanese Ki-43 Hayabusa fighters and they were literally shot out of the skies. However by late January 1942 a batch of Hawker Hurricanes were flown from the British carrier HMS “Indomitable” off Sumatra. They flew to Palembang to join the fray but they were “too little and too late” to change the course of the conflict. The Japanese by then had over-run the whole of the Malay Peninsular and were poised at Johore, right at the doorstep of Singapore. From there the northern areas of Singapore came within the deadly range of Japanese gun fire.

I crossed the North South Highway near Ayer Itam and headed for the west coast as I could see from that distance. On passing Senggerang area, the coast of Tanjong Laboh appeared in sight. And upon arrival I as usual circled overhead to announce my presence before coming in for landing. I landed at 1015 hours and slowly taxied to Mr.Tay’s hanger where he was with some pilots. I got up to join them and Mr Tay reported to Johore Control of my safe arrival. My trip had taken two hours and forty-five minutes one of the longest duration; it was a tiring one especially in that cramped cockpit.

I returned to Singapore to borrow money for hiring a lorry for transferring my possessions, furniture and rescue boat back to Batu Pahat. I returned to Mersing on a weekday and no one was around so I hired a lorry loaded my furniture, equipment, belongings, rescue boat and left for Batu Pahat. As a courtesy I left a note stating what I have collected. Days later I got a nasty call from Singh, he was upset and agitated by what I did. He had apparently brought a guest to Mersing and upon entering found the sitting room empty. I supposed he was in shock on discovering the unpleasant surprise and of course utterly embarrassed. He was in a rage when he called me on the phone and lashed out his anger. Meantime I found his backlash as un-warranted, un-reasonable, ridiculous and insulting as I had taken what rightfully belongs to me. I wrote my complaint to Capt. Siva and also to DCA appealing for help to recover my financial loss by way of two and half months salary owed, flying helmets sold to him and part of extension costs for the living quarters that he had promised to reimburse; total near ten thousand Malaysian currency. Nothing happened and it was obvious to me that the authority does not involve in private arrangements. That was my second bad experience I had encountered dealing with fellow aviators.

Fly North to Kangar

 

 

A cloud of excitement descended upon us at Batu Pahat when we were invited by Tengku Aznam to participate in the “Karnival Udara Micro-light Perlis’95. The annual function was organized by the State of Perlis with the co-operation of Pens Enterprise Sdn Bhd at Kangar. Perlis is the northern most Malay State sharing a common border with Southern Thailand and entry into the Kingdom could be made at the border town of Padang Besar. The air Carnival was to be held from the 29^th April till the 3^rd May was a significant occasion that demanded a purpose for a big celebration. The first micro-light school was founded there and the set-up consisted of a clubhouse, a large hanger and a dormitory for stay-in students. The main trainers were open-cockpit two-place and single place Quick Silver Mx’s and an advance GT 500.

Unlike previous participation of trucking up our micro-light, this time we were to fly all the way. A feat never been attempted before and it would literary propel us into the history as being the first to have done it. Tay was our air boss in Batu Pahat and obviously the heavy burden felt upon him to get things organized. Wow! what an opportunity presented before us to be able to demonstrate the results of our training and airmanship in taking up the challenge. We traveled with Tay on that sacred mission of selecting the most suitable landing spots along the way from Batu Pahat to Sungei Batu Pahat,Kangar a distance of about 660 km. And came up with the following landing spots:-

(1) Melaka . (Airport identifier: MC)

(2) Port Dickson

(3) Klang (Padang Maran)

(4) Jendarata (WMAJ)

(5) Pantai Remis

(6) Taiping (WMBI)

(7) Sugei Patani

(8) Alor Setar (WMKA)

(9) Kangar.

Sketch map of West Malaysia

Malaysia’s giant state oil company Petronas would sponsor the fuel for the whole round trip from Batu Pahat and allocate the supplies to all designated landing places at our request. In the meantime we selected 3 main pilots and 4 co-pilots that would rotate on certain sectors to fly the 3 aircraft as listed below:

1. Tay Teng Sin pilot

2. Capt. Chung Cheng Chuan pilot

3. Manfred Lurie pilot

4. Anuar bin Selamat co-pilot

5. Chow Hong co-pilot

6. Hamzah bin Ehwan co-pilot

7. Pattiselanno David Jermias co-pilot

For back-up we had a van for ground support that carried our spares, tools, extra fuel and

food also double-up as our “ Search & Rescue” with radio communication links.

We started to seriously practice short take-off and landing to prepare us for any emergency. The practice included simulated force landing in case engine failure. Many enduring hours were spent in our cramped cockpit in order to get a accustomed to the discomfort of long distance flight. We intensified training as the days grew nearer to build up enough confidence and to sharpen our skills.

Micro-light at Tanjong Laboh, Batu Pahat

Challenger II (2-place micro-light aircraft) at Tg. Laboh

We had the largest collection of micro-light aircraft in the whole of Malaysia around 14

in numbers made up of :-

3 Quick Silver model Mx II’s, dual side-by-side open cockpit.

1 Quick Silver Mx, single-seat open cockpit

1 Quick Silver GT 500, dual tandem seating with enclosed cockpit

2 Aerodyne Vectors, single-seat open cockpit with “Butterfly” tail.

1 Rally, single-seat open cockpit

1 Golden Circle Tiara, dual side-by-side with enclosed cockpit.

2 Quad City Challenger II (Clip-wings and Standard) dual tandem with enclosed cockpit.

1 Sky Walker, dual tandem seating, open cockpit (German design)

2 Polaris trikes, flexi-wings dual tandem seating, open cockpit.

In our planning for the selection of suitable micro-light for the “Karnival” participation we came up with 3 aircraft, having taken into consideration long range capability and

reliability. The other micro-light especially the Mx’s did not have the range nor the speed. The aircraft of our choice and the main pilots were :-

Microlight aircraft Pilots

1. Quick Silver GT 500 Tay Teng Sin

1. Quad City Challenger II Standard Capt. Chung Cheng Chuan
2. Polaris trike. Manfred Lori (Monty)

Monty with his Polaris Trike

The final week before schedule flight kept us really busy checking our aircraft over and

over again. Scrutinizing for loose bolts or nuts, dented frame, torn fabric and many

items connected with safety. In aviation there is no comprise any fault however minor

had to be remedied to ensure the airworthiness of the aircraft is maintained or retained.

We were worried over our flying helmets which we had ordered from the States had

been delayed. Finally it arrived Singapore at the eleven hour, on the eve of our proposed

departure and there was a mad rush to grabbed them. By nightfall we were all back at Batu Pahat and fired up with excitement that kept us awaken with in-depth discussion on what laid ahead. However we looked forward to the great event with enthusiasm. Capt. Chung with all his experience would pilot the Challenger and I as a green horn would sit in as his co-pilot. He was the boss and I the slave and had to work the controls when he

Briefing (FromLeft): Author, Monty, Hamzah, Tay, Rick and Michael

decided to “hands off” and relax. Anyway it was a wonderful experience and a privilege for those chosen to participate. Looking back we were the most fortunate ones.

In the initial planning stage we were told that the event would be held with pomp and

pageantry, a minister would officiate the occasion by flagging us off. The local Press

will be present to provide news coverage. A helicopter will be assigned for an aerial escort. In our pre-flight briefing we were told that on the approach to Port Dickson we will find a distinctive landmark of 3 very tall chimney stacks, like fingers pointing up to the skies. And a tiny improvised airstrip should be located just before that. There our fuel in 44 gallons drums are stored in the hanger and a guy by the name of Maniam would be

expecting us. That 3 Quick Silver Mx II will join us to Kangar, our spirit shot up to a

higher level with such encouraging and welcoming news.

Day 1 (25^th April l995) We woke up early in the morning and rushed to the airfield. Hurriedly opened the hanger doors and pushed out the Challenger II. Then followed by an aviation ritual ceremoniously carried out in what is known as a “Pre-flight check”. A thorough inspection of the aircraft to ensure that it was safe before taking her up. There were a couple of guys probably from the local Press but no sign of the Minister or the helicopter. I supposed it was too early as the sun had just begun to rise above the horizon.

Capt. Chung got into the front seat and I settled down in the back seat. He started the

engine and we taxied slowly to take our place in a queue. Monty in his “Polaris” Trike was No:1 position and Tay in his “ GT 500” was No: 2 , followed by us No: 3 in our long wings “Challenger II”. The active runway was # 15 and we watched in silent as Monty took off and climbed, followed immediately by Tay in his GT 500. We were next coming up into position at the threshold and paused for a moment to ensure runway was clear. Then Capt. Chung pushed the throttle forward to full power and the Challenger shot forward racing down the runway before lift off. We climbed to gain height and a 180 degrees turn took us over the airfield and waved at the small miserable group of well-

wishers. We headed north to compass reading 305 degrees, climbing gradually to 2000 ft, the morning air was cool and refreshing. We had a panoramic view of the surrounding two hills of Batu Pahat with low lying mist, the greenery to our right and the blue sea of the Straits of Melaka to our left. And below us laid vast plantation of coconut, oil palm, banana and durian and other fruit orchid.

We trekked coastal following the irrigation bunds that stretched all the way north to

beyond Melaka. However we regarded it as an emergency option if we were forced to

land. By then we had passed Sungei Ayam a tiny fishing village by the coast and soon we were over Minyak Baku where we observed the lighthouse on our left. We crossed the mouth of Batu Pahat River we headed for Serang Buaya. Except places punctured by tiny villages and small towns along the coast, the vast interior appeared as a huge green carpet stretching out as far as our eyes could see. We enjoyed the bird’s eye view and it was beautiful especially we were bless with exceptionally good weather with only mild crosswinds near Muar town. What else can we wish for ?.

At about that time our radio communication had failed as our VHF set type Icom 21 had

malfunctioned. Fortunately Tay was just ahead of us as flight leader and we decided to

follow in close formation. When overhead the tiny off shore island of Pulau Besar we noted that the GT 500 turned inland for Melaka Airport and we followed suit. In the approached the part of the town appeared below us with the distinctive green-roof of the mosque called Masjid Al-Azim Moments later we were over the padi fields before sighting the airport. We kept close to the left and slightly higher to avoid the propeller wash from the GT. We were in close formation to the GT which descended gracefully to a perfect touch down. Simultaneously followed by us and rolled out a short distance before turning right vacating the main runway. We slowly taxied into a vacant parking bay. Having shut down the engine we came out of our cramped cockpit with a big smile. At the same time we were on a look-out for Monty but unfortunately there were no sign of him. That sector flying time was 1 hour 15 minutes. We paid courtesy call to the Control Tower and were greeted with warmness from the air traffic controllers. At same time were astonished probably their first encounter in guiding 2 tiny fries safely in. It was the opposite of their usual business of ushering the big wings, extreme noisy jet monsters.

We then adjourned to the warong (A local Malay foodstall) opposite the airport for our

hearty breakfast of roti chennai. There was ample time for chit-chat as we waited for

our back-up party for refueling of our aircraft. Meantime we replaced a battery for our radio and it worked again much to our relief. The next sector was to Port Dickson and found us flying low to avoid the clouds We had problems with the weather as it was not good and the going was rather rough being tossed about in the turbulence. However as we approached Port Dickson the bad weather had subsided and we could see the town from quite a distance. We flew along the beautiful coastal strip of white sand fringed with casurina or palm trees, with many beach resorts, chalet and golf courses. In no time the 3 chimneys landmark received our attention and we focused in locating the airstrip.

As usual the GT 500 had spotted and went for landing. We had noticed a trike by the hanger so it must be Monty so we circled awaiting our turn. The airstrip was not up to our expectation, just a run-down laterite runway without proper markings and the approach from inland over the casurina trees gave me the creeps. Capt. Chung made a few attempts and each time he came in between the trees with the wingtips almost brushing the branches. It was scary enough and felt my heart throbbing hard and fast. Monty was already there, watching us sweating it out.

The Swiss cheese later gave an account of his trip from Batu Pahat.“25^th April Wednesday 0520 hours, He had prepared and ready after pre-flight checks at approximately 0630 hrs. He had warmed-up his engine and was looking for enough

daylight to see his instruments and runway to take-off. The moment arrived at 0645 hrs

and he took off (Micro-light are limited to day flying only). It was a beautiful morning,

the skies was clear and mist hovering mother-earth. A little tail-wind assisted him much to his delight. En-route flew along the scenic coastline of West Malaysia and heading in the general direction of Port Dickson. He had never flown a micro-light for such a long distance at the most, he estimated that he had flown some 60 km. And not mentioning the 600 over km awaiting for him over the horizon. One other thought that entered his mind was that he was flying solo. Unlike the other pilots who could communicate each other and the ground. So obviously he was flying without radio and therefore could not communicate. He recollected that his sessions at the karaoke lounge came handy and engaged in his off-tune singing. By the way who cares as nobody was listening.

At 0905 hrs he arrived at Port Dickson and as was told in earlier briefing to look the Club-house aircraft, a wind-sock and an Indian guy. However none of the above was present .“Oh! Did I land on the wrong spot ?” he wondered. Slowly and cautiously he taxied to what he figured out as the hanger. “Oh! Yes I am in the right place” was his remarks. The wooden hanger was full of micro-light but there was nobody and the fuel presumed locked inside. There was nothing of the 3 wonderful machines that were mentioned. The place was totally deserted and there was no indication of any preparation. Apparently the whole chain of screw-ups begun to surface that had trotted down his spirit.”

At 1100 hrs he watched us overhead, circling and attempting to land on that piece

improvised runway. He broke the bad news to us after we landed that made us sad and in despair. We immediately sent our back-up to purchase fuel to ensure that we continue onwards. Eventually Maniam did turn up and notified us that the 3 micro-light that were supposed to participate had been cancelled. he further delays from FIS Kuala Lumpur pending clearance and finally at 1400 hrs we left Port Dickson for Port Klang. At some distance ahead in the approach to Klang we noted that a large formation of dark clouds hung over the town. It was threatening and we accelerated hoping to beat the weather. When arrived it had begun to drizzle but with our enclosed cockpit we were not too concerned.

On our down-wind leg we noticed the GT 500 landing on to the public car-park at the place called “Padang Maran”. We followed as No.2 in a descending left bank into base-leg, another left into Finals and aligned the landing path. Capt. Chung reduced power,

descending gradually just clearing the fence and to touch down at the car-park. As the bitumen surface was wet and slippery owing to the drizzle, the rolling seems endless. The rows of trees on either side flashed past then at a point when danger appeared eminent, Capt. Chung swerved to avoid but went over a hump that snapped the nose-wheel. For once we found ourselves nearer to ground and got out without any effort.

We learned that the GT 500 had been seriously damaged in the accident and unable to

continue. At about that time Monty appeared overhead and we tried to warn him by sign language to avoid the car-park and land at an adjacent football field. Somehow had figured it out and landed at the field safely in one piece; much to our delight. We immediately set to work on the Challenger dismantling the damaged fork, replaced with a spare one that took roughly over an hour and completed before sunset. We secured the aircraft by proper tie-down and partially covered the engine in case rain. That night Anuar and myself decided to turn into “human dobberman” to guard our Precious machine while the rest put up at Capt. Chung’s house. Throughout the night we did not sleep we were being attacked by countless mosquitoes diving from all angles and pressing home their sacred mission. We were of course inside our van but it was uncomfortable. When we did rolled up the wind-screen it became too humid and when we did the reversed the mosquitoes had the advantage . It was a nightmare and we became sacrificial victims of the tiny vampires. Thus ended miserably marred by the

misfortune of Day 1.

Day 2 ( 26^th April) Anuar and I had not slept at all, we spent the whole night warding

off attacks by hordes of mosquitoes. Fortunately I was not schedule to fly but Anuar was

on and eagerly sat in with Capt. Chung for the next sector that was to Jendarata. According to them the flight was very pleasant as the weather was superb they landed safely at United Plantation airstrip at 0915 hrs and taxied to the hanger where the company’s Cessna 206 was parked. The estate manager Mr. Loh came up shortly to welcome us and made us really felt at home.

While relaxing on the grass under the shelter of Challenger’s wing we heard the sound of a chopper approaching our direction. In no time it was hovering over our airstrip, obviously looking for something. The chopper was a Westland “Wasp” from the Royal Malaysian Navy and it did not occur to us at that time that they was searching for us as we forgot to inform FIS (Flight Information Service) of our safe arrival Jenderata. For that I am sure our air boss got his ears blown off by the angry FIS.

In the meantime the weather had not been kind to us. It was windy and dark cloud formation appeared threatening. We had to wait in hope that the weather would change for the better. And surprising it did improved and so we decided to fly half way to Sitiawan instead owing to constrain of time. Chow Hong was the co-pilot as it was his turn to fly with Capt. Chung and they immediately took off. I rode with the back-up team in the van and we made off to Lumut, the home port of the Royal Malaysian Navy. On the way we found a push-cart stall selling a local delicacy called “chendol”. It was somewhat different from what we are used to in Singapore, They had added glutinous rice with giant red beans and it was really appetizing and really delicious. Most of us had second or third helping, sat by the roadside and just ate away without the feeling of embarrassment. Then continued on to Sitiawan where we found the grass airstrip close to town. The wooden airport building was sadly in the state of neglect, however the grass had been cut and the whole airstrip area fenced. Sitiawan is the town where the notorious Chin Peng the Secretary General of the Malayan Communist Party was born and grew up there. When the Japanese invaded Malaya he absconded into the jungle and joined the Malayan People Anti-Japanese Army. They helped the Force 136 but after liberation the MCP was outlawed by the British. So they retreated to the jungle and took up arms again.

Relaxing under the wing of the Challenger II

We waited anxiously and at 1810 hrs we heard the familiar sound the Rotax engine from

a speck in the sky. On approaching nearer we could make out the outline form of the

Challenger in it’s blue and white colour scheme. It circled overhead before descending

and came in for a perfect touch-down. Capt. Chung taxied slowly to the building where

we had all gathered. Tay suggested that since the weather still favourable we should fly to the next destination Pantai Remis. For that sector I hopped in the back seat with Capt. Chung and we took off at 1830 hrs as we had the advantage of fine weather, no wind and a clear blue sky.

The scenery before us was that of a huge green carpet, the only difference was that at some places it appeared lighter or darker. I think that was due to shadow from the over cast of clouds. We kept looking for clearing or built up area but negative, when I overheard over my headset someone asking for our location and Capt. Chung answered

“airport in sight”. I was shock as I did not see anything but a sea of trees all over the place as far as the horizon. Suddenly at a distance ahead of us I caught the shinning reflection from the wings of an aircraft that appeared out of the greenery. I felt relief as that was our confirmation that we were dead on track. Moments later we saw the airstrip, office block, the living quarters and the landmark a tall conspicuous tower. As usual we circle overhead announcing our arrival. We landed safely and taxied to a parking area and secured her firmly to the ground for the night.

The estate manager Poul was there to welcome us and offered the use of the facilities. We thanked him but we were concerned about Monty who had no radio and had failed to turn up. In that case we decided to mount a search and return to Sitiawan to look for him. The estate road was laterite, narrow, winding and horribly dusty in dry condition. As we sped on it churned up the loose particles, leaving a long dusty trail. In no time we were contaminated with the red dust. It took us some time to cover a mere 25 miles distance.

By the time we got to Sitiawan it was night and the time was about 2030 hrs. As we approach the airport main building, it was pitch dark and dead silence like a cemetery. We parked our van at a parking lot near the building and started walking slowly, it seemed to be isolated. Our hearts were heavy as we thought of unpleasant things but suddenly we saw in the darkness, the silhouette of the trike with a lone figure seated at a corner. It was of course our Monty who had decided to call a day as the weather was bad and was about to bare it out in his make-shift sleeping corner. Of course we were glad to have found him and took him with us to town for an overnight stay at the “Fajar Hotel”

Day 3 (27^th April) We woke for an early breakfast and dumped Monty at the airstrip to

pick-up his trike . We then headed for Pantai Remis re-tracing that 25 miles long and

winding road and to be contaminated again. Just as we arrived at the airstrip we could hear the sound of aircraft engine and as it drew nearer the familiar delta wings of the trike became recognizable. It was our dear Monty the soloist. He came in to land safely and taxied to where the Challenger and the United Plantation Piper Super Cub were parked. The estate manager Poul turned up to send us off; it was very kind of him.

The next sector was to Taiping and I jumped into the back seat to fly with Capt. Chung.

After engine warmed up we took off at 0830 hrs and headed north at the same time we

informed Ipoh traffic control of our presence and intentions. The flight took 1 hour and

10 minutes before we had the airport in sight. It was a grass strip but noted that only the

area confined to the runway proper that the grass had been cut. The other areas were neglected and the lalang, (elephant grass) had grown to 3 or 4 feet high. However we landed safely and rolled along looking for a short cut but the grass were really tall and we could not see where we were heading. We were un-certain and afraid so we did not take any risk and back track to the runway. Finally we found a taxi-way at the end of the runway and it led us to the terminal building. We were really sad and found that like Sitiawan it was in the state of neglect and totally abandoned. We were told that Taiping experienced the most rainfall, making it as the wettest area in the whole of Malaysia

At that stage our new instruction was to wait for the helicopter escort at 1100 hrs. As promised the helicopter appeared overhead for a while and flew away and disappeared over the horizon. And sure enough by noon it started to rain, something that the local accepted and got used to it. Meantime there was nothing that we could do but wait patiently and at the mercy of Mother Nature. Anyway it was a good time to cool down

and to catch up with our much needed rest. We were totally exhausted and the bare concrete floor did not deter us even with the rain beating in.

Rain, rain at Taiping I’m k.o.

At 1400 hrs the helicopter from reappeared and landed right in front of the terminal building. The pilot stepped out and introduced himself as Major Mansor, he had brought out a batch of correspondents to cover our story. At that time it was still drizzling and

appears like it would never stop and the major asked us if we could continue. Our answer was negative as our engine/carburetors are exposed and could malfunction. We would go only when the drizzle has stopped. The helicopter took off and flew North but much later we came to know that it flew into a storm that forced them to put down on a school field near Gong Kedah. As the drizzle continue so we had no alternative but to call it a day and retire to a hotel down town.

Day 4 (28^th April) We had early breakfast at the coffee shop that was very cheap, cost only 10 ringgit for the 7 of us. As food is concern Taiping is the cheapest but the weather is worst the foulest. We arrived at the airfield, paid off the watchman for guarding our aircraft over-night. The next sector was the most difficult owing to mountains the highest is the Kedah Peak 4000 ft. The air traffic movements were denser especially near Butterworth the home of the Royal Malaysian Air Force. Tay occupied the pilot’s seat and Capt. Chung stood in as No.2 and they took off, followed by Monty in his trike. Their destination was Sungei Patani an army base and so I joined the support group.

According to them they flew via Bukit Mertajam, Kulim bye-passing Butterworth and

noted that military traffic were evident with F5E fighter jets all over the place and too close for comfort. They then decided to descend as low as 700 ft to give the widest ceiling clearance and flew between the mountains. That sector though only 65 miles took them 1 hour and 20 minutes to cover. They landed safely at the army base of Sungei Patani.

When we arrived at the army base we had to report to the guardhouse and to my surprise

I was not allowed entry on the grounds of security reason, of being a Singaporean. It came as a shocking surprise to me as I never expected it. I thought that Malaysia- Singapore relationship had always maintained reasonable good level. How come I am being targeted as a security threat? I was upset and puzzled but no reasonable explanation given, I supposed that he was just following orders. So I had no alternative but to wait at the guardhouse while they drove in to refuel the two aircraft. Later they told me that the base was beautiful. They had the clubhouse with a swimming pool ideally located at the end of the airfield. It served as a watering center for the scavengers where beer was available abundantly.

Cockpit view of flat padi fields, Kedah

We are off again on the road to Alor Star, the last rendezvous before our final destination

Kangar. By the time we got there the Challenger had already landed and parked safely in

the hanger of the Kedah Flying Club. Monty was still at the end of the runway but appeared to have problems. Later we found out that he had “flooding” in his carburetor but managed to resolve it. he last sector Alor Star to Kangar in Perlis, a short distance of 32 miles and what we term as micro-light country as Kedah is the rice-bowl of Malaysia. It has miles after miles of flat land where padi is planted. I was told if it was during the harvest period the whole land would appear golden from the air.

For the last sector I had the honour to fly with Capt. Chung to be the first from Batu Pahat to arrive.. We took off after Monty and headed North to magnetic heading of 330

degree and maintained cruise speed. Our last leg and we were not taking any chances like overheating the engine. Monty on our left was more to the coast and we inland but we had the advantage of speed. After one hour and thirty minutes we located the airfield with the runway, hanger, clubhouse and the dormitory. It was a wonderful sight and we flew over the town as we came in As usual we circled the airfield announcing our arrival. We noted Monty was not far away flying near the mountain. We landed safely at 1330 hrs and taxied to the hanger where a small crowd of enthusiast waiting to welcome us. Wow! We had done it, it was our greatest achievement and all the training that Tay our Air Boss had drummed into us had finally paid off. Later Monty took part in the navigation competition and won the Award.

We had propelled ourselves into history and the whole adventurous trip took us the total of 9 hours and 25 minutes. It had begun at Batu Pahat in the State of Johore and ended up at Sungei Batu Pahat at Kangar, Perlis State. It was spread over 4 days and flying as the

weather permitted. Also present were General Aviation aircraft mostly Cessnas’ from the other Clubs had already arrived and parked at their designated area. The helicopter that was supposed to provide us with an aerial escort piloted by Major Mansor was from ASM Travel Sdn Bhd.

Author first from left at Kangar, Perlis

By then we were really exhausted from a long day but just in time a transport came along and spirited us away to Pens Travelodge. It was an impressive 10 storied modern hotel in heart of town and we took to the hot showers for a good clean up and a change of clothing. We swapped our “monkey suit” for civilian and then settled down to a hearty meal. It was a day to be remembered

Lima’93

I took my wife Josephine and son Ian to the air show held at Pulau Langkawi from the 7^th of December to the 12^th December. It was my first visit and the main venue was at the International airport itself at Padang Matsirat.

Lima means Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace. It was the show case into advance technology and sophistication of the Aviation and Naval hardware. It was the greatest show ever to be staged in this region besides the Asian Aerospace in Singapore.

The top aerospace and the naval defence manufacturers are eyeing for their share of Asia and South East Asia market.

The Russian made a significant presence with their 4 jet-engine Antonov-124 strategic air-lifter the mighty “Ruslan” (NATO code name Condor). The gigantic aircraft had a maximum payload of 150 metric tons and 24 wheels undercarriage to support the massive weight. First flown in December 1982 and entered service with the Soviet air forces in 1987. It could be opened from the front with up-ward hinging “visor-type” nose and for easy loading the nose-wheel could be retracted to allow the nose-down positioning. The interior revealed a large cargo hold with titanium flooring capable of loading virtually anything from tanks, helicopters, aircraft to other military stores. It had a wingspan of 240 ft, length of 226 ft and the height of 69 ft. For performance it had maximum cruising speed of 537 mph and the altitude of 39,380 ft. It had upper cabin after the wings for 88 passengers and 350 troopers on the lower deck.

The Russian monster Antonov AN-124 “Ruslan” heavy lifter

The two giant AN-124’s brought in 4 Mikonyan-Gurevich designed super fighters the MIG-29 (NATO code Fulcrum) an incredibly agile and capable supersonic interceptor. First flown in 1977 had a wingspan of 37 ft 3 ins, length of 48 ft. 9 ins. and height of 15 ft 6 ins with speed Mach 2 that is twice the speed of sound. They were built in substantial numbers equipping the Russian Air Force, Eastern block countries and exported to their allies China and India. Ukraine besides Russia was a major operator of the MIG-29 and had an aerobatic team called the “Russian Knights”. Other aircraft was MIG-31 (NATO code Fox hound) and Sukhoi SU-27 (NATO code Flanker) supersonic interceptors. There were also two helicopters.

The Russian MIG 31 super fighter MIG-29 aerobatic team

Also came a big three jet engine type Tupolev T-154 airliner displaying the logo of their national carrier “Aeroflot” Last and not least the tiny “Baby Mig” a single seat ultra-light Aviatika built type 890; the 890-U was a dual-seat version. I was more interested in this tiny ultra-light rather than the huge fighter. That was something that I could fly and may even have the opportunity when they are brought into the country. One Aviatika 890-U dual seat side-by-side model was presented to the Prime Minister as a token of good will. Solidly built to Russian requirements this Ultra-light can withstand rough handling.

It appeared that the Russian were in a serious business mood and were there to draw interest from the ministers, the military leaders from the Asian countries. It was their chance to demonstrate their product superiority over or at least equivalent to western standard. Their aerobatic team was a thriller as it went through various maneuvers loops, rolls and spirals. It was obvious that they also wanted to be included as a strong competitor in the defence market. It was a good exposure to the International Press and the Media on what they had in store unseen in this part of the World.

In one scenario trailing colourful smoke vapors of red, white and blue the world renowned British aerobatic team the “Red Arrows” burst into the sky above in a fantastic display of aerial maneuvers that thrilled the huge crowd. All eyes were glued on the formation of British built BAE Hawk jet aircraft painted red as they went through their stunts. They loops, rolls, converging head-on and criss-crossed each other what seems to be dangerously close. It drew the excitement of the crowd and to their hair-raising stunt.

The Royal Malaysian Air Force also had their own aerobatic teams made up of a 7-ship formation aircraft type Northrop F-5E Tigers called “Kris Mas”. Another a 4-ship formation team called “Cakera Mada” flying the old MacDonald Douglas A-4 Sky Hawks and the “Taming Sari” flying propeller driven newly acquired Swiss-built Pilatus PC-7 trainers.

Another classic performance was by a single F-18 “Hornet” of No.75 squadron the Royal Australian Air Force. The powerful twin-engine jet shot into the sky in a tremendous display of skill, daringness and thrilled the whole crowd.

I was particularly drawn to the flying display by the Ultra-light “Aviatika 890” a multi-

purpose ultra-light that could be employed as a trainer, spotter, air patrol or aerial photography. It is the product of MAPO the same factory that makes the big MIG fighters. The power-plant a 64 hp “Rotax 582”engine is from Austria... It had a wingspan of 26 ft 6 ins, length of 17 ft 4 ins and empty weight of 451 lbs. Maximum speed at level flight 75.6 knots. The flight endurance is about 3.5 hours.

In the cockpit of the single-seat Aviatika 890

It was my first visit to Pulau Langkawi a beautiful island paradise, smaller than Singapore and situated at the North Western part of Malaya near to southern tip of Thailand. The island covers some 52,618 hectares mostly forested by tropical jungle. The highest point on the island is Mount Raya about 869 m above sea level. The population numbering some 40,000 is largely concentrated around the main town of Kuah.

We stayed at a wonderful beach resort of “Pelangi” located at the Pantai Cenang comprising of a cluster of low two storied wooden buildings in beautiful landscape setting. It is fringed by coconut palm, shrubs, ferns and link by walk-ways creating a homely atmosphere; kampong style. The swimming pool had excellent facilities with a bar by the edge, serving customers seated on the stool in the water.

We took time to pay a visit to the tomb of the legendary figure of Mahsuri. The beautiful maiden was wrongfully accused of adultery and subsequently put to death. It was said that during the execution white blood flowed out instead of the usual red. That was firm testimony of her innocence but before her death she laid a curse on the island for 7 generations. The place was destroyed by external enemies thus fulfilling the curse that only castor trees could grow and doves could live there, Generally people still came to pay homage and to pray at her tomb; anyway it has become a tourist attraction.

Josephine at the tomb of Mahsuri

Author with son at Pelangi resort poolside bar

After some days we took a boat out to sea off Tanjong Mali where the anchorage was located for the naval review. Unfortunately most of the ships had already sailed off, however we managed to take some photos of the remaining warships. A British Royal Navy 4,100 tons destroyer type 42 name HMS “ Glasgow” and pennant No.(D 88)

HMS Glasgow Sagitario

Two Italian frigates of 2,525 tons of the “Lupo” class name and pennant numbers “Sagitario” ( F 565) and ? (F 552)

Vaederen (F 359) KD Rahmat (F 24)

A 3,500 tons frigate from Denmark name “Vaederen” with pennant no. ( F 359) and

lastly a Royal Malaysian Navy frigate name KD “Rahmat” with pennant no. (F 24)

All the naval ships had flight deck at the stern to accommodate a helicopter for offensive role, maritime patrolling and anti-submarine work.

We had a hectic day in the hot sun cruising about a small boat along a line of warships at anchor, looking and a admiring the machines of war at sea. At the end of the day we were really glad to be back to our hotel for refreshing up and ready for our meals. After that we watch TV or just relaxing in a cozy corner before retiring to bed.

Gelang Patah/Nusajaya

 

 

In the year 2000 Bill obtained a land parcel for lease from Messrs Prolink to build his flight park on his own, He erected a 2000 ft x 30 ft runway with hanger, workshops and store facilities at Gelang Patah. Bill operated under the name of Nusajaya Flight Park; I salute that Yankee for his daring entrepreneurship, dedication to the sports he loved and for his contribution to aviation. Some had advised him against the idea from the beginning stating that from past experiences such adventure could not succeed unless there is strong sponsorship either from the Government or someone with lots of money.

The location he selected I would say ideal owing to close proximity to Singapore where most of the students came from. It took only 15-20 minutes traveling time from my house at Jurong to the airfield via the second link. Of course one must leave early so as to avoid the morning build up of traffic at the checkpoint. More over it is convenient with easy access to the flight park. And should there be any cancellation of training due to bad weather or some other reasons one could return to Singapore without any fuss or problem. There is no need to look for accommodation as required if one is at Batu Pahat, Mersing or Desaru and thereby would save a lot of time and money.

Nusajaya Flight Park

Bill operated the Flight Park with his son Steven assisting; they had quite a collection of micro-light including a single Quick Silver Mx II “Sports”, 2 New Zealand-built Bantam B-20, B-22, a flexi-wing trike, powered parachutes both backpack and a buggy-type. He catered for those that are interested in micro-light flying both for recreational or for those interested in General Aviation licence. In Malaysia all hours flown in 3-axis micro-light aircraft are accepted as in General Aviation. In addition all micro-light exams are 100% applicable to General Aviation licence.

My first courtesy visit to Nusajaya was flown on the 14^thMay, 2000 from Batu Pahat taking off at 0730 hours and landing about one hour fifteen minutes later. The flight path taken was along coastal heading southward and from Pontian detour inland straight to Gelang Patah. However the project did not flourished and prospects did not look appear good, owing to poor response probably owing to the slowing down of economical growth. For some time the situation was not improving for the better and Bill was unable to continue with the tenure of the land. He then made an offer to EAA to take over upon an understanding that operation be carried out by him on behalf of the Association. He as a member licensee would continue to provide the usage of the facilities and his aircraft by the members of EAA.

My next visit was on the 3^rdAugust, 2003 after a long absence but stayed longer that time and temporary operated from there for quite a while. By then Bill finally called “quits” and prepared to migrate to the Philippines to settle down with his family. All that I can say is best wishes to this daring old man, who had the courage to go on his own in setting up his Flight Park. May the good Lord bless him and that he may enjoy his retirement years doing what he desires.

In 2004 a Singapore businessman Victor Lim on a visit to Thailand was fascinated by a micro-light that flew overhead. At first he thought that it was an over-sized model aircraft. He followed it to the airfield at Chonburi and discovered to his surprised that it was a full scale micro-light aircraft. Eventually he signed up with the flying club, doing his flying lessons there and clocked some 60 flying hours. He was not only keen but had the means to promote the sports and to bring joy by making it accessible to everybody. When he came to know of Nusajaya Flight Park he thought of it as ideal location just minutes away from his Tuas office. He ventured to purchase 3 Quick Silver Mx’s (2 Sports model and 1 Sprint) at $40,000 apiece. He then gladly leased it out to EAA for the purpose of flight training. We were roped in to help in the assembly of the 3 aircraft being carried out at the hanger. On weekends, Lee, Moo, David Leong and I would come down to the Nusajaya from Singapore to assist Rick and Paul. Anyway it was our passion and joy to work on it. Our ultimate reward was the satisfaction to see it taking shape to finally take to the sky for the maiden flight.

From left: Victor, Secretary, Rick, Capt.Siva and author

In 2006 the Secretary of EAA Malaysia Flying Club, Ms Rani (Capt. Siva’s wife) gave notice to all members for a get-together at the flight park renamed “Adrenaland Nusajaya”. In conjunction with the move, the General Committee invited all members for the weekend gathering on 15^th and 16^th July at the airfield. The two days events are programmed as follows:-

Saturday 15^th July Sunday 16^th July

0800 – 1000 Dawn Patrol Dawn Patrol

Breakfast Breakfast

Spot Landing Spot Landing

Practice Competition

1000 – 1200 Competition briefing Flying

Lunch Lunch

1500 -1900 Spot Landing Competition Aircraft fly back

Members Fly-by

1900 – 2100 EAA Committee briefing - END-

Cocktail & BBQ dinner

Presentation

Nusajaya Flight Park

My ‘Challenger II’ at Nusajaya Flight Park.

It had been a wonderful weekend of fellowship, of getting to-gather, in catching up with lost time, making new friends and strengthening old ones. The EAA Chapter 1090 Malaysia had come a long way through the years and had grown visibly in strength and maturity.

Author at Nusajaya on weekends helping to fix up the Mx’s

Author with Majib posing before CH 701 belonging to C.Y. Lee

Supporting 4B Flying Club

 

In 1996 our air boss Mr. Tay decided that we supported the 4B Youth Flying Club by way of providing flying training, maintenance and logistic backup, including hanger facilities for their 4 micro-light aircraft. They had been to the States and had purchased from John Lasco four Quicksilver Mx II Micro-light aircraft and had it assembled in Melaka by Maniam. Upon completion we were to help them ferry the planes to our base for training purposes. As Batu Pahat was un-control airstrip, training could be done without any interference whatsoever. Noorashikin the Club’s Captain, a commercial pilot by profession was the key figure in the organization. She and a few like Taslem were to undergo conversion training to micro-light and will be the future instructors of the Club.

Additional of 4 aircraft that came over to Batu Pahat were a blessing, it bolstered our air strength considerably and saw an increased in our activities. It was to the extent that our weekends became a crowd puller and there was never any shortage of local spectators, cheer groups. Especially on Saturdays it was “show time for them to enjoy and us for our display of skill or folly as we proudly took to the skies in our colourful micro-light much to their curiosity and delight. Most of them were trying to understand how a group of aviation crackpots of a good mix of Asians and Caucasian are bonded together by a common interest to fly un-imaginable “flimsy machines”.

The micro-light we had were very basic, it was covered by rags and held by skeletal tubing with seats mounted in an open cockpit exposed to the mercy of the elements. In the chillness of the morning you get the winds battering your face to numbness. The un-thinkable part was that the manufacturer itself declared the aircraft are not certified flying machine. It means that they cannot be held liable and that you fly at your own risk.

Anyway the insurance companies on viewing refuse to have anything to do with it; they are not venturing into risk.I believed that I have flown into Melaka about 7 times, the first time was in 1994 and the second and third time was in April with Capt. Chung in our Challenger II whilst on our way to “Karnival Perlis’95 and in on our return trip. The four time in 2^nd May 1996 was to attend the Inauguration of 4B Flying Club. I flew in with Najib as co-pilot in company of Mr.Tay in his GT500 with Paul. We took off from Batu Pahat at about 0830 hours and arrived Batu Berendam Airport at 0935 hours. Upon landing we were directed to park at the sprawling Eagle Aircraft Factory near the Malaysian Flying Academy.

The Malaysian Flying Academy was founded in 1982 for training of student pilots to commercial standard. It operated a fleet of Piper aircraft single and twins; it also provided a simulator for ground training... It was the only professional pilot training institution in the country.

Paul our spoke-person would like to describe his trip in his own words.

“The time was 8.30 am and it was a beautiful morning at Batu Pahat Micro-light Flight Park. There was an air of excitement as Tay called Melaka Control Tower on his hand phone. He then broke into a smile when he had finished the call and said, “The weather report is good. Let’s go!”

Our aircraft a Quicksilver type “GT500” registered 9m-UBI (Niner Mike Uniform Bravo India) with Tay at the controls was first to takeoff and I was in the back seat.

We circled overhead, watched the second aircraft a blue and white “Challenger II” took off with Pattiselanno David as the pilot-in-command and Najib as co-pilot. A few minutes later our 2 aircraft were in radio contact and we set the course North for Melaka.

The view was simply breathtaking as we flew pass meandering rivers, fishing villages and numerous kampongs. We actually noticed that many curious people rushed out of their houses on hearing the drone of aircraft engines just to catch the glimpse. The lush green vegetation consisted predominantly coconut and oil palm stretched as far as the eye could see, interspersed with vegetable farms, durian orchards and padi fields. On our left the coastline with it’s abundant blue waters and over the horizon a thin outline of some Indonesian islands.

We flew comfortably all the way along the coast at the permissible height of about 1,200 ft and noticed that the coastal road to Melaka had little traffic. As we flew over the Muar Bridge, Tay pointed out some prominent landmarks to take note for future reference. Meantime he contacted Melaka Control Tower and reported our position over the radio “Niner Mike Uniform Bravo India report approaching Pulau Besar”. From the air I can say Melaka looked extremely beautiful as I lived in that historical state. I tried to recollect the colourful history that made Melaka a jewel and obviously became the target of foreign powers the Portuguese, Dutch and later the English conquerors. At one stage Tay called Melaka Control “Melaka Tower, Uniform Bravo India passing Pulau Besar, request descend clearance and joining instructions”

Melaka Tower: “Uniform Bravo India cleared for descend, runway in use #03, QNH One Zero Zero Niner, report airfield in sight.” Tay banked the aircraft to the right for the approach to Batu Berendam Airport and begun to descend gradually. Moments later he reported “airfield in sight”.

Melaka Tower: “Niner Mike Uniform Bravo India clear to land, runway #03, wind: 6 knots”. In acknowledgement Tay repeated the message as required “Roger, runway #03. clear to land. Uniform Bravo India. Full stop.”

The aircraft shook slightly as it caught into wind turbulent but managed to stabilize moments before a perfect touchdown. The GT500 rolled along the runway and slowly taxied to the Eagle Aircraft Factory as directed by the ground control. A few minutes later the Challenger II piloted by Pattiselanno David appeared overhead, circled the airfield before descending for also a smooth landing. The time was 0935 am and we had taken some 1 hour and 5 minutes. Later we learned that another colleague named Monty flying the ‘Polaris’ trike was to arrive later in the evening”.

The opening ceremony was the next day 3^rd May and Paul had this to comment concerning the event.

“The 4B Flying Club was officially launched by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. The colourful function was attended by a large group of dignitaries, school children and aviation representatives. The President of the 4B Flying Club and also the Deputy Transport Minister, Datuk Wira Mohd Ali Bin Rustam were among the VIP’s in attendance. Datuk Ali Rustam was instrumental in the formation of the 4B Flying Club. After the opening ceremony 3 Quicksilver Mx Sprint put up an aerial display followed by para-gliders from Eric Lee of Air Freedom (Batu Pahat)and also an aero-chute team; the Conti brothers (Australia). Our group from Batu Pahat in strong support of “4B Flying Club” had 4 micro-light aircraft on display.”

 

Melaka Airport with Datuk Ali Rustam ( From left No.7

Now known as Melaka (old spelling Malacca) is an interesting place to visit as it has a long historical background. The State is located midway of the Malay Peninsular at the west coast about 224 km from Johor Baru. History revealed that in 1511 the Portuguese were the first Europeans to come to the East under Alfonso D’ Alburquerque and had taken Melaka by force of arms after a naval bombardment by some 18 warships. Many ancient ruins still stand like the famous Portuguese gateway, ‘Porta de Santiago’, the St. John’s fort on the hill, the ruins of the Church at St. Paul’s hill. Here the incorruptible human remains of a saint (Francis Xavier) was once laid in the vault before removal to Goa, India. Also there is a Chinese temple dedicated to the 14^th Century Chinese explorer Admiral Zheng He or in Hokkien Cheng Ho when he made a state visit to Melaka. The Chinese admiral made 7 epic voyages between 1405 – 1433 to as far as West Africa with a naval armada of some 300 ships and some 28,000 men. It was truly an enormous fleet that only a wealthy country like Imperial China that could have the means to launch it. Admiral Zheng He was acting as an envoy sent on expedition by the Ming Emperor Zhu Di of China; he was a eunuch and came from a Muslim family.

 

Porta de Santiago A replica of Portuguese warship

The Portuguese Cultural Square at Ujong Pasir

The Dutch had also occupied Melaka for a short period in the 16^th Century and named it “Slavenburg” (Slave City). Their influence is evident in some buildings in town; such as the red coloured Christ Church, the Stadthuys, (Town Hall) and the clock-tower. Also interesting is the Maritime Museum where a replica of a 15^th century Portuguese warship “Flor de la Mar” (Flower of the sea) on display located at Jalan Quayside. Inside housed a vast collection of pictures and artifacts. Another interesting place to visit is the Portuguese Settlement (Padri sa Chang) at Ujong Pasir where the descendants of the Portuguese are located. There stand a modern building complex known as the Cultural Square where shows are arranged in keeping with their heritage. A nearby beer lounge acts as the waterhole for cooling down after a hot day or a hot spicy meal. A restaurant to sample their local cuisine, their favourite commonly pronounced as ‘devil curry” but correctly should read as debal. It can be hot, spicy for some and not for the faint hearted unless you prepare yourself with a fire-extinguisher or jar of ice water. They spoke a kind of local lingo known as “Kristang” a mixture (rojak) of Portuguese and Malay languages.

The Portuguese had ruled Melaka for more than 130 years and the descendants follow the religion and culture of their fore-fathers and are predominantly Roman Catholics. There are also shops at the square selling all sorts of wares from souvenirs, clothing, to pickles and a horrible local prawn-paste called “belachan” that gave out an awful over-powering offensive smell. It could also contaminate your clothes and came in many shapes, some oblong, some rounded like cannon-balls.

Then on the 12^th May Datuk Mohd Ali Rustam, paid an official visit to Batu Pahat and we were much honoured. He was accompanied by an entourage from 4B Youth Movement and some UMNO officials. Our Air Boss Mr. Tay was at hand to show them around and gave a briefing on our setup and activities.

 

Datuk Mohd Ali Rustam with Monty and Mr. Tay

Then on 14^th July Capt.(Retired) Muid Yahaya, AMN visited our Flight Park with his family and we had the priveledge of knowing him. Capt. Muid was the pioneer that introduced micro-light into the country in 1981. In that case he is rightfully known as the ‘Father of Micro-light Aviation.’

Then on 6th July our Air boss and a few other pilots drove to Melaka to prepare to ferry the next pair of 4B Flying Club Quicksilver MX Sports to Batu Pahat. I flew to Melaka alone in my Challenger II for my 5^th trip. Meantime Capt. Norashikin and Shamsul carried out some test flight. The next day 6^th July we had the honour of Datuk Wira Mohd Ali Mohd. Rustam who arrived at 11.00 am to meet all the fliers before sending us off.

A short while later, the 4 micro-light took off one after another and headed for Batu Pahat. One aircraft piloted by Taslem who circled the airport once in farewell tribute as they had been there for the last 3 months.

I took Phil an Englishman as my co-pilot; we took off at about 1200 hours and headed south for Batu Pahat. After some time, we came to the Muar River crossed near the bridge and before us the red laterite runway of Bakri appeared in view. It is the camp of the Police Field Force locally known as “Polis Hutan”. They are fully equipped with “Commando” armoured carriers; which were amphibious that is to say that they can float or ‘swim’ on water. They are built by the Cadiliac Cage Company of USA and in use by several countries including Singapore.

I reduced power for the descent and had the runway lined up in my approached. It was a bit windy and somehow the landing had not been that smooth. My front nose wheel tire blew up as it contacted the runway and the aircraft swayed off into the grass patch. Fortunately nobody was hurt, it just a slight shock for that moment. We quickly dismantled the wheel and took it to a bicycle shop just outside of the airfield. It was a Sunday but fortunately the shop was opened and had it repaired in no time.

The Police Field Force camp had been our popular spot for stopovers and each time we attracted crowd. The children from the school were even given free time to come over to interact and inspect our micro-light. They were very excited and swarmed all around our aircraft showing keen interest. I guess some would dream to be future pilots like I

had when I was young like them. Anyway our presence there was to generate interest, to instill air-mindedness, to create a young generation of aviation enthusiasts. Our motivation was to encourage flying in general and micro-light in particular. Owing to low maintenance cost in micro-light than in General Aviation, recreation flying can be made affordable to the ordinary man in the street.

 

One of our stop-over at Bakri taken with school children

My 6^th and 7^th flying trips to Melaka was when I flew with Bala in May,1997 on our way to Ulu Bernum for the EAA Young Eagle’s Camp and dropped in on our way back.

Air Rally & Langkawi Fly-in (Oshkosh East)

Sungei Besi was chosen as the location where the foreign participants had to have their aircraft forwarded for the purpose of assembly and test flight. The aircraft came mainly from Australia, South Africa and Italy. By the 26^th July, Saturday 1997 the containers bringing the aircraft should have arrive at the base. Facilities such as transportation, crane services were arranged by the organizers in their preparations. By the 27^th July all the participants had flight-tested their machines except for the South Africans whose aircraft had not arrive. The Langkawi Fly-in (Oshkosh East) was the first light aircraft convention and exhibition held in Asia being organized by Le Proton LIMA. We that is Capt. Chung and myself were however deprived of the information until the last minute. For that reason we did not have enough time to prepare my “Challenger II “ micro-light for participation.

So we decided to join Charlie Tan of Aerochute Udara (M) Sdn Bhd as Capt. Chung offered to fly one of his Trike for demonstration purpose. Two Airborne Trikes were trucked to Langkawi and we drove there meeting up with Charlie. We met Wilson Lim of Le Proton and checked in the hotel arranged by them

Partcipants at Sungei Besi comprised of Deb and Wayne in their Australian Light Wing, Dave and Fred in their Thrusters, Nestor Slepcev and Shirley in their Storch, Peter in his Karatoo 6, Jack a Malaysian in his Quicksilver GT 500, Valerio in his Italian Stork.

The problem was the haze, the Indonesian farmers in their usual practice of un-control “slash and burn” policy had fuelled forest fires over vast areas had created a hazard that blanketed the whole area included neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore. Visibility was greatly effected and was so bad that you could not see the wind-sock at the other end of the airfield. The 28^th July “D” Day was the official flagging off with Dr. Mahathir and other dignitaries in attendance. Not withstanding poor visibility the Rally departed Sungei Besi in the afternoon and headed for Melaka via Kajang, Mantin and Seremban a distance of 61 nautical miles. Upon landing at Melaka they were accommodated in the “Eagle’s hanger a brand new factory of 500 acre. The next day the haze was worse and flying had to be cancelled due to bad visibility as micro-light are allowed to fly only by visual in clear and under good weather condition.

The 30^th July, Wednesday visibility was as previous day and they were not allowed to fly into Kuala Lumpur International Airport as nobody wanted to bear any responsibility for their safety or having to answer their embassies.

Charlie Tan with Capt. Chung Nestor Slepcev

Instead they suggested an alternative scheme that would take them to un-control airstrip at Jenderata, a United Plantation private airstrip 170 nautical miles north of Melaka. The plan was acceptable and from there they flew to Ipoh only 40 nautical miles north east of Jendarata. As foreigners they felt un-easy flying over the jungles of Peninsular Malaya as they must have been fed with stories of man-eating tigers.

I understood their feelings as I myself felt the same thing when I flew alone in my “Challenger II” from Mersing in the East Coast across to Batu Pahat in the West over tiger territory. There had been reports of frequent sightings in the areas of Kluang, Kota Tinggi and Kahang; the area I covered. Of course I was nervous and uneasy as I flew over endless green canopy of giant trees that spread like a carpet over the whole area. And the ugly thought of ending up below in a wrong place, wrong timing with hungry tigers eager to have you for meal was not entertaining.

The group landed safely at Ipoh and transferred to the hotel for overnight stay and the next two days were “free & easy" to go shopping and sight-seeing. By then the South Africans had joined the Rally with their Cessna and Piper Cub.

On 2^nd August, they were officially a flagged off for the next leg to Kangar the northern most Malay State of Perlis that borders the southern province of Thailand. Kangar is a flat country making up of padi fields as rice is local staple food and the main agriculture crop. However, the flyers got off the ground that day but had to abort and returned owing to poor visibility. The next day 3^rd August, Sunday they were determined to fly off if they could see the windsock at the end of the runway. The next destination was to Taiping via Batu Gajah and Pantai Remis. The Taiping airfield located in the centre of the town but had not been in use and partially neglected.

From Taiping they departed for Alor Star via Kulim a distance of 70 nautical miles flying over vast stretches of padi fields. Over Alor Star the scenery was beautiful with padi fields all around is known as the rice bowl of Malaysia. However owing to the haze and poor visibility they were forced to fly at 500 ft above ground level which was alright for micro-light. They landed safely at Alor Star and were entertained at the Kedah Flying Club. They were temporary delayed owing to the haze and they were off again as soon as visibility improved due to rain. And relying on their GPS they arrived at Kangar at about 1630 hours. After landing a full reception was accorded to them with State and local officials in attendance.

The 4^th August, they were to arrive Langkawi at about 1100 hours to be in time for the opening speech by the Prime Minister of Malaysia Dr. Mahathir. They left Kangar after breakfast and flew the last 30 nautical miles over water; across the channel and arriving overhead Langkawi at 1,500 ft. We were at the International Airport at Padang Matsirat waiting as they appeared. I was particularly interested in the “Storch” that Slepcev was flying. The “Storch” a high-wing was developed by Slepcev into a scale-down replica of the original Fiesler Fi-155 Storch aircraft. The famous Storch was deployed by the Nazi Commandos in a daring raid to rescue the Italian leader Mussolini from his hilltop prison.

Author with Slepcev replica of the German Storch.

Specification of Slepcev Storch Mk 4 with Rotax 912 engine.

Cruise: 70 knots

Top Speed: 85 knots

Stall speed: 15 knots

Rate of climb: min. 900 ft per

Take off distance: 30 – 50 ft.

Landing distance: 30 – 50 ft.

Service ceiling: 15,000 ft.

Fuel capacity: 75 litres

Empty weight: 289 kg

Gross Weight: 480 kg

Length: 6.8 meters.

Wing span: 10 meters.

Wing area: 16 sq. meters.

Number of seats: 2

The main landing gear is very strong and robust, could withstand heavy landing without any problem. It had excellent all round vision owing to the glass-cage cockpit with clear overhead sunroof. The long range extra fuel tank took the shape of a bomb under-slung in the belly. In World War II camouflage and German markings, it is still my dream-plane and if I could have some hours in it I would be satisfied. Anyway we had the opportunity to meet Nestor and his wife Shirley as they put up at the same hotel. Later we had the chance to examine his aircraft and took pictures of him and his wonderful invention.

The previous day, Sunday had been very unfortunate when a sudden storm hit the island at about 1730 hours and damaged the 3 micro-lights from Batu Pahat. The micro-light a Mx single, a Ralley and a Skywalker were hurled against each other by strong winds and sustained serious damage.

On the 6^th August, Wednesday we attended a briefing at the Control Tower with others on procedures and flight safety. After that we prepared our “Airborne” trike with Capt. Chung as Pilot and I sat in the backseat. At 1015 hours we taxied to the main 12,500 ft runway and positioned at the threshold runway # 21 before being cleared to take-off. It was a very short run before we were airborne and allowed to do only one circuit before landing. It was short demonstration and we were happy to have had the opportunity.

Later another bad accident happened when a Malaysian Air Force “Nuri” helicopter performing a “search and rescue” demonstration hovered over the area of parked aircraft. As a result a “Zodiac” experimental aircraft belonging to Rakan Muda was flip-over by the powerful down-draft and completely damaged the aircraft. The 400 kg “Zodiac” was one of the 48 aircraft that took part in the 5-day air show. It was a sad day not only for Rakan Muda but also to most of us to see the beautiful (Rm 220,000) aircraft completely written off.

Author with Capt. Chung

Rakan Muda “Zodiac” that was wrecked