SINGAPORE: Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) pilot Kurt Pearce flew an F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter from Australia to Singapore to take part in the Singapore Airshow’s flying display.
His seven-hour journey across the ocean was a lonely affair – the fighter jet seats one only. His toilet? A pouch that turns urine into jelly.
Arriving on Jan 29, the RAAF pilot took to the skies again on Feb 1 to perform aerial spins and dives during a media preview of the Singapore Airshow 2026. The biennial event began on Feb 3 and will run until Feb 8.
This will be the 32-year-old’s routine for the next few days, as he wows spectators during aerial displays. The F-35 will take to the skies for about 10 minutes at a time, performing various manoeuvres.
Singapore is set to take delivery of its first of 20 F-35 fighter jets in 2026. Four of them are expected to be delivered by the end of the year, with eight more in 2028. The remaining eight are expected to arrive around 2030.
Five other air forces are involved in the aerial display this year: the Republic of Singapore Air Force with its F-16C fighter jet and AH-64D Apache attack helicopter; the Indian Air Force with its Sarang helicopter display team; the Indonesian Air Force’s Jupiter aerobatic team; the People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s Bayi aerobatic team; and the Royal Malaysian Air Force with a Sukhoi Su-30MKM fighter jet.
Two commercial manufacturers are also participating in the aerial display: China’s COMAC with its C919, and Europe’s Airbus with its A350-1000.
There will be one display from 11am to 11.50am on Feb 5. During the weekend, aerial displays will happen twice daily on Saturday and Sunday, at 11am and 3.30pm.
This is the first time that the RAAF’s F-35A is performing at the air show, and Flight Lieutenant Pearce said his maiden appearance has been “amazing”.
He added: “Being able to demonstrate what we can do with the F-35... is really exciting. The cool part about being a display pilot is that you get to fly a lot closer to the ground, and a lot closer to the people.”
While the fighter jet is capable of breaking the sound barrier and hitting a top speed of Mach 1.6, or 1,976kmh, the fastest it will go during the air show is somewhere between 1,000kmh and 1,100kmh.
“If we go faster than (the speed of sound), it is going to really hurt the audience, and probably break some windows,” he said.
The speed of sound equates to Mach 1, or 1,235kmh. Without ear protection, people can get hearing damage if they were to experience something breaking the sound barrier.
When asked if there was a difference in training pilots for combat and for putting on aerial displays, RAAF Squadron Leader Jordon Sander, 48, said there was not.
“The things we look for are good hands and feet. Flying needs to be natural for them,” he said.
A qualified F-35 pilot himself, the flight instructor was previously piloting an F-18 fighter jet.
When asked to compare the two fighters, he said: “It is a bit like (comparing) a car that is 30 years old and a newer car.
“The (F-35) aircraft is easier to fly, and with a fighter aircraft, making it easy to fly is important so that the pilot can concentrate on combat.” - The Straits TImes/ANN
