SINGAPORE’s air force scrambled two F-16 fighter jets yesterday afternoon after a Malaysia-registered helicopter flew over the Strait east of Changi Airport, reported The Straits Times (ST).

The city-state’s Defence Ministry (Mindef) and civil aviation authority (CAAS) issued a joint statement that the warplanes were mobilised at 12.40pm.

“After ensuring our security was not compromised, the F-16s were subsequently stood down,” the statement said.

“Preliminary checks indicate the helicopter is of a civilian type and registered to a foreign company.”

The incident caused Changi Airport operations to be affected between 12.50pm and 1.28pm, with nine arrival flights and 11 outbound aircraft delayed.

Mindef and CAAS were responding to a query from ST after X user @‌alert5 posted at 1.10pm about Singapore scrambling F-16s after a Malaysia-registered helicopter entered the airspace near the airport.

The post included a screenshot from FlightRadar24, which showed part of the helicopter’s flight path, as well as its registration – 9MCGA.

Another user, @RXRoy, said the Republic of Singapore Air Force jets were scrambled from Tengah Air Base.

FlightRadar24 showed the Malaysia-registered Airbus H125 chopper left Senai International Airport in Johor at 12.10pm, flying towards Johor Baru and Ulu Tiram, ST reported.

The aircraft turned south at 12.28pm around Sungai Lebam towards Pengerang and continued on the path until it was over the waters east of Changi Airport around 12.40pm.

The helicopter dropped to as low as 120m while circling the area for about 20 minutes before heading northeast and landing near Bayu Damai police station in Johor, said tracking site FlightAware.

Flight tracking sites showed the chopper took another 37-minute trip at 3.08pm before flying back to Senai at 4.19pm, landing at the airport at 5.13pm. – August 10, 2023.