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Paya Lebar Air Base

At a Legislative Council meeting in1949, the Governor emphasised the importance of air transport for Singapore. As a focal point of air communications in Southeast Asia, air transport would attract trade and commerce, and increase the revenues of the Colony. Finally, in 1951, a decision—championed by Singapore’s civil aviationauthorities and approved by the Colonial Office in London — was taken to build a new airport at Paya Lebar. Located eight kilometers northeastof the city center, it was close to the city center and well placed to take over commercial and civilian air services previously handled by Kallang Airport

Paya Lebar was free of obstructions, and the airport could be built there following the resettlement of existing squatters and residents. The building cost could therefore be kept low. Consequently, in 1951, land acquisition affecting some 300 families over 1,000 acres (~4 km2) of land was carried out. Construction of the airport ensued in 1952, until its official opening in 1955, when it began operations with a single runway and an interim passenger terminal building.

Although there was a clear need for the civilian airport and a projected surge in air traffic, the Colonial government could only afford an interim passenger terminal. There were also other aviation priorities, such as making operational improvements to air traffic control, and physical upgrades to airport infrastructure, such as runway lengthening, enlargement of apron bays, etc. Nevertheless, building Paya Lebar Airport was a necessary, strategic move to enable Singapore to catch up with international aviation-sector developments.

By the late 1950s, it became vital for Singapore to have a well-functioning international airport with adequate capacity. The airport would support the country’s role as an entrepôt for trade, tourism and foreign investments. Moreover, air traffic was growing about 20% faster than the world’saverage rate, and passengers made up 25% of international traffic passing through Singapore.

By the late 1960s and early 1970s, Paya Lebar Airport’s physical infrastructure and development had come under strain due to air traffic growth and emerging advancements in aviation technology. These included a new generation of jet planes, the wide-bodied jumbo jets. Two and half times the size of previous commercial planes, they boasted three times the seating capacity and twice the cargo space.

As a result, measures were taken to prepare the airport for these modern aircraft. Works on lengthening and resurfacing the runway began in 1967, but it was clear that a new airport — with larger capacity to accommodatethe anticipated increase in air traffic — was required in the medium term. Fundamentally, a decision had to be made between two options: upgrading the existing airport, or building an altogether new and better international airport elsewhere on the island.

As a precaution, Paya Lebar Airport was kept as a contingency option. The plan was to divert planes to Paya Lebar if any faults or breakdowns occurred at Changi Airport, and to use buses to transport departing passengers over to Paya Lebar