Flying in Singapore
Good to know and my experiences

Most of us don't know even where Singapore is located on the map, although this small city state should be on the bucket list. It's trully British whilst it's so different from everything we got used to it. This is true for the RC model flying as well.

Singapore is a fine city. They fine for everything.

Well this is not quite true, however when there's a fine it's painful. Therefore it's good to know what to do and to do not.

Singapore is not too big, everything has to be done within a small area. This is true for the model flying as well. There are few model airfields, few clubs and very few model shops.

Model airfields and clubs

RMS

I could visit the Radio Modellers Singapore airfield at Harbour Front in South Singapore. This is a well located and nicely built model airfield with safety equipments, like model catching web. Both fixed wing models and helicopters (even nitro ones) can use it. Officially for members only, however the guys there were really friendly and welcomey, I don't think so it's a problem to make few starts there. The area is well separated from other places, like houses.

What more, it's fully prepared to Singapore local weather, which changes quite a lot from sunny to rainy and back, and it happens quickly. There is a big tent at the depo area. This is a proper model airfield for modellers. Even more, it's well located, really close (100 metres) to Labrador Park MRT station.

Bing Map: { coordinates = 1.270967, 103.802425, pinTitle = RMS, pinSubTitle = , infoBoxTitle = Radio Modellers Singapore, infoBoxDescription = 1A Labrador Villa Rd, Singapore 119188., zoomLevel = }

Sembawang

The other field I could visit is in Sembawang. This is a district of Singapore at the opposite end of the city. This is not an official model airfield, therefore free to fly for everyone. Sembawang is a big green field surrounded by apartment houses and with a car park at its corner. The houses are really far from the place where you take off due to the dimensions of the field. The guys flying there were even more friendly, I got informed about local things by them a lot.

This place is not a real model airfield, neither tent nor web nor anything was built there. So when it rains, it rains. Even more: the field becomes a marsh very quickly. If you dropped your model, it's a real adventure to get it back.

Bing Map: { coordinates = 1.460651, 103.814669, pinTitle = Sembawang Airfield, pinSubTitle = , infoBoxTitle = Sembawang airfield, infoBoxDescription = Sembawang Dr Singapore, zoomLevel = }

Regulations

Singapore is a strict city in terms of everything but modelling. Insurance is mandatory, however nobody checks it as long as nothing happened. Operation ceiling is 200 feet in general, and some airspaces are forbidden close to airports and airbases. Everything else is by common sense.

Purchasing models and spare parts

Well, not too many model shops are available in Singapore, and to be honest I found only one which deals with helicopters as well. This is the Rotor Hobby in the Kichener Complex shopping mall on the French Road in Kallang near to Lavender MRT station. The staff members are really helpful and friendly and the shop keeps spare parts for Align helicopters mostly.

As the guys in Sembawang informed me, the modelling is falling in Singapore as well. More and more shops are closing down due to the drones which are being sold everywhere in the city from Plaza Singapura to the bigest tech mall, Sim Lin Square.

And if this is not enough Hobby King wins there too. To be honest, half of the models I've seen were HK models there. And almost all batteries were Turnigy batteries. Also sad, but only very few people are flying helis there.

Bing Map: { coordinates = 1.308181, 103.862280, pinTitle = Rotor Hobby, pinSubTitle = , infoBoxTitle = Rotor Hobby, infoBoxDescription = 809 French Road, #02-37 Kitchener Complex, Singapore 200809, zoomLevel = }

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