RMAF Butterworth (RAAF Butterworth)

RMAF Butterworth, also designated TUDM Butterworth, is situated in Seberang Perai, Penang, 4.5 nautical miles from the town of Butterworth. The Royal Air Force (RAF) established the site in 1939 on a care and maintenance basis and officially opened RAF Butterworth in October 1941. During the Japanese invasion of Malaya in December 1941, the airfield was captured by the Imperial Japanese Army, which held the facility until September 1945. The RAF resumed operations in May 1946. From 1948 to 1963, the station hosted Commonwealth Strategic Reserve units during the Malayan Emergency. On June 30, 1958, control was transferred to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), which operated the site as RAAF Butterworth. In 1970, ownership and control were ceded to the Malaysian government, and the facility was renamed RMAF Butterworth.

The base is operated by the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) and hosts the Headquarters Integrated Area Defence System (HQIADS) under the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA). While the facility is a Malaysian installation, the RAAF remains a co-tenant. Command authority for the Integrated Area Defence System is held by an Australian air vice-marshal. The Australian Defence Force maintains a permanent presence through No. 19 Squadron RAAF, a detachment of No. 92 Wing, and the Australian Army’s Rifle Company Butterworth.

Stationed RMAF units include No. 18 Squadron, which operates Boeing F/A-18D Hornets, and No. 15 Squadron, which operates BAE Hawk 108 and 208 aircraft. No. 3 Squadron provides rotary-wing capabilities with a fleet of AgustaWestland AW139 helicopters. The RAAF detachment operates Boeing P-8 Poseidon aircraft. Other resident units include the 509th Territorial Army Regiment and the Royal Malaysian Navy Northern Region Support Unit. The base infrastructure includes an administration and training center located in buildings formerly used by the RAAF School. Additional Australian units on-site include the 2nd/30th Training Group, the Australian Defence Force Investigative Service, and a Joint Health Command clinic.