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Daily Express
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
Phoong calls for calm ahead of polls
Published on: Monday, May 19, 2025 Published on: Mon, May 19, 2025 By: Wu Vui Tek Text Size: Phoong receiving a souvenir from Goh. Kota Kinabalu: Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe has called for unity and calm ahead of the upcoming 17th Sabah state election. He said that divisions must not be allowed to disrupt the state's harmony and progress. Advertisement Speaking at a media night hosted by the Federation of Sabah Chinese Associations (FCAS) at Wisma Hakka, Phoong thanked its President, Tan Sri Goh Tian Chuan, for the opportunity to address over 160 Chinese associations gathered for the event. 'Tonight is meaningful for me. The encouragement I've received, particularly from Tan Sri, has strengthened my resolve and given me confidence,' said Phoong. He echoed Goh's message that Sabahans must remain calm in facing the upcoming state elections this year. 'Whether at home or in coffee shops, people are already discussing the direction Sabah is heading. 'But we must not allow politics to sow hatred or disrupt friendships,' he said. Advertisement He expressed hope that the Chinese community leaders will continue to work together for the greater good. Phoong also underscored the media's vital role as society's watchdog. 'We're in an age where news, both real and fake, spreads in seconds across platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, and TikTok. 'AI tools like ChatGPT can now generate false or harmful content instantly. 'This places even greater responsibility on the media to stay neutral and accurate,' he said. Earlier in his speech, Goh urged the Chinese community to foster moderation, unity, and cultural preservation. He said FCAS, the largest Chinese organisation in Malaysia, remains focused on education and avoids active political involvement. 'But we must open our eyes and minds, and ask ourselves: where is the Chinese community going?' he asked. Goh said the Chinese community must support brave and young leaders who are willing to serve, even if they lack experience. 'As a member of the national Chinese community and Sabah's industrial sector, I must say the Chinese industry in Sabah feels a little cold. We must turn this around,' he said. He said Sabah is the most moderate and harmonious state in Malaysia. However, he warned that modern technology can both inform and distort. 'Technology can change your face, your music, your truth. That's why reporting facts is more important than ever,' said Goh. He called for deeper collaboration between the media and the cultural and business circles. He said we must adapt and change according to current technology while staying true to our journalistic work. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Borneo Post
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Borneo Post
Sarawak dragon boat team win Sabah Head of State Trophy
Phoong (sixth left, back) presenting the Sabah Head of State Trophy to N82 Bukit Sari Lawas of Sarawak. KOTA KINABALU (May 18): N82 Bukit Sari Lawas of Sarawak paddled their way to the Sabah Head of State Trophy in the 10th Sabah FCAS International Dragon Boat Race in Likas Bay here on Sunday. This was the first time N82 Bukit Sari Lawas won the main title in the annual race organised by the Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS). Bukit Sari Lawas won in a record time of 3:38.55s to edge seven other finalists in the 800m race. Lautan Biru SLDB Dragon Boat Team Tuaran finished second in 3:41.66s while Jetama Entulon Family DBT third in 3:42.58s. Bahtiar Sajeli, the team manager of N82 Bukit Sari Lawas, was a mirror of happiness when met after the prize presentation by Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe. 'We were quite confident going into the final race based on our performance in the heat. 'We finished second (in the heat) but we did well considering the time we achieved. 'So, we went back and conducted a post mortem to identify and rectify our weaknesses as well as to plan our strategy. 'It went well and we are very happy to have won the TYT Trophy,' he said. Bahtiar went on to say that the team, which finished second in the Sabah Chief Minister Trophy last year, underwent a one-month training after the recent Hari Raya Aidilfitri to prepare for the FCAS race. 'Our focus next is the inaugural Lawas International Dragon Boat and Cultural Festival from May 22-25,' added Bahtiar. Ten other finals also took place on Sunday which saw Kota Kinabalu Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (KKCCCI) emerge winners in three of the categories. KKCCCI teams won in the FCAS Trophy for HZ & Local Kota Kinabalu FCAS Member Mixed Team (minimum eight women) category, FCAS Trophy for Malaysian Chinese Mixed Team (minimum eight women) and FCAS Trophy for Malaysian Chinese Men's Team event. The rest of the winning teams were Jetama Entulon Family Senior in the Sabah Chief Minister Trophy; RMP Paddlers (Sabah FCAS Dragon Trophy for International & Malaysian Mixed Team); Sibling Performance Team (Kinabalu Junior Trophy for local junior 15-20 years old teams; PS Dragon Boat Team (Kinabalu Dragon Trophy Men's Team Open); Dragon Boat Club CUHK (Kinabalu Trophy Mixed Team Open); Karapaw (Kinabalu Phoenix Trophy Women's Team); and PNK Master Dragon Boat (Kinabalu Master Trophy International & Malaysian Men's Team). The top three teams also received prize money – in the Sabah Head of State Trophy RM10,000, RM5,000 and RM3,000; Sabah Chief Minister's Trophy and Sabah FCAS Dragon Trophy (RM8,000, RM4,000, RM2,000); and the rest of the categories RM3,000, RM2,000 and RM1,000. Meanwhile, FCAS president Tan Sri TC Goh said despite heavy rain midway into the final day on Sunday, the races went well without any untoward incidents. 'The Sabah FCAS dragon boat race took place successfully and well done to all including the participants who have helped made it happened,' he told reporters. The event this year saw new high of 75 registered teams, including from Singapore, Hong Kong and Brunei Darussalam. Overall 141 teams comprising 988 paddlers were involved in the 11 categories contested. All the winning teams also set new records in their respective category, said Goh. 'Hopefully next year there will be more teams, including international entries, for the dragon boat race. 'We have set May 15-17 for next year's race and it also coincides with the Harvest Festival month. 'So, hopefully the participants will not only come here to compete but to visit and tour around,' said Goh. Earlier, Phoong who represented Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Hajiji Noor, led in the symbolic opening of the final day race and presenting the prizes to the top three winning teams. FCAS deputy president-cum-organising chairperson Datuk Susan Wong and invited guests including Mayor Datuk Seri Dr Sabin Samitah were also present Full Results Sabah Head of State Trophy N82 Bukit Sari Lawas 3:38.55s Lautan Biru SLDB Tuaran 3:41.66s Jetama Entulon Family DBT 3:42.58s Sabah Chief Minister Trophy Jetama Entulon Family Senior 3:41.09s Landas Kasihnya Warisan 3:41.67s Sri Sundar 3:42.11s Sabah FCAS Dragon Trophy RMP Paddlers 3:54.97s DBKL 3:58.43s Sabah River Raptors ITCC 3:59.51s FCAS Trophy (HZ & Local KK FCAS Member Mixed Team) KKCCCI 3:53.61s KK Hakka DBT 3:56.23s MACMA – Mushu 4:13.27s FCAS Trophy (Malaysian Chinese Mixed Team) KKCCCI 3:53.83s Kuching Dragon Boat Club 3:57.80s KK Hakka DBT 3:58.47s FCAS Trophy (Malaysian Chinese Men's Team) KKCCCI 3:48.14s Kuching Dragon Boat Club 3:57.11s KK Hakka DBT 3:58.79s Kinabalu Junior Trophy Sibling Performance Team 3:45.46s Lentuong Junior SLDB Team 3:46.14s Jetama Entulon Family Junior 3:46.72s Kinabalu Dragon Trophy (Local Junior Boys) PS Dragon Boat Team 61.47s Sri Sundar 61.73s Dragon Boat Labuk Beluran 62.27s Kinabalu Mixed Trophy Dragon Boat Club CUHK 61.05s DBKL 63.21s Sabah River Raptors ITCC 63.35s Kinabalu Phoenix Trophy Karapaw 66.48s KKCCCI 67.14s Kuching Dragon Boat Club 68.14s Kinabalu Master Trophy PNK Master Dragon Boat 59.90s DBKL 60.59s Lela Cheteria 61.59s
Hindustan Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
The race to build the fighter planes of the future
'THERE'S NEVER been anything even close to it—from speed to manoeuverability…to payload,' gushed Donald Trump, as he announced on March 21st that America's future fighter jet, the F-47, would be built by Boeing, an aerospace giant. The jet is one of several so-called sixth-generation aircraft on drawing boards around the world. In December China showed off what was believed to be a prototype of the J-36, an imposing plane with stealthy features and a large flying-wing design. Britain, Italy and Japan are co-developing their own plane, in Britain provisionally called the Tempest, which is due to enter service in 2035. France, Germany and Spain hope that their Future Combat Air System (FCAS) will be ready by 2040. Together, these represent the future of aerial warfare. Fighter jets tend to be categorised by their age, features and sophistication. The first generation appeared in the 1940s and 1950s. Many of those in NATO service today, like America's ubiquitous F-16, are fourth-generation ones, built from the 1970s to the 1990s. The latest fifth-generation planes, such as the F-35 and F-22, the latter perhaps the leading fighter jet in operation today, tend to enjoy stealth, the capacity for sustained supersonic flight and advanced computer systems. One shift they all predict is more, and better, surface-to-air missile systems, a lesson reinforced by the strong performance of air-defences in Ukraine. That requires more stealth to keep planes hidden from enemy radar. Stealth, in turn, requires smooth surfaces—bombs and missiles cannot hang off the wing, but must be tucked away inside a larger body. Keeping their distance A second shift is in the increasing range of air combat. For the past 40 years, the proportion of air-to-air kills that occur 'beyond visual range' has grown steadily—from a tiny fraction of all in the 1970s to more than half between 1990 and 2002. Since then air-to-air missiles have been able to travel ever farther. Europe's Meteor, with a 200km range, was at the forefront of technology when it was first tested a decade ago. America's AIM-174B and China's PL-17 can now hit things 400km away. That means planes need better sensors to spot and fire at targets from farther away; they also need better electronic warfare equipment to parry incoming threats. These technologies require more space to generate power and remove all the heat that electronics tend to produce. Finally, planes are especially vulnerable to long-range missiles when they are on the ground. That means they need to fly from more distant airfields, requiring larger fuel tanks and less drag for more efficient flight. The huge wings seen on the Tempest and the J-36 allow for both those things, notes Bill Sweetman, an aviation expert. Range is a particular concern for America. Its airbases in Japan are within reach of vast numbers of Chinese ballistic missiles. It plans to disperse its planes more widely in wartime and to fly them from more distant runways, such as those in Australia and on Pacific islands. Long-range planes are appealing for several reasons. 'We're talking about really extreme ranges,' notes Group Captain Bill, the Royal Air Force (RAF) officer in charge of thinking through how the service will use the Tempest, speaking recently (without his surname) on the 'Team Tempest' podcast, which is produced by the consortium building the aircraft. The plane will need to be able to cross the Atlantic Ocean on a single tank of fuel, he says, a journey that would require today's Typhoon jet to be refuelled three or four times. One reason for that might be that big refuelling tankers, which once sat safely to the rear of the front line, are increasingly vulnerable to new air-to-air missiles, like China's PL-17. Another is that the Tempest could then take circuitous routes, avoiding Russian air defences along the obvious paths. Put all this together and you get planes that look like old-fashioned bombers. Mr Sweetman compares the hulking J-36, with massive wings and cavernous weapon bays, to an 'airborne cruiser', optimised for range, stealth and carrying capacity over dogfighting agility. The single most important requirement for the Tempest is the ability to carry a lot of weapons, says Group Captain Bill, noting that it will have roughly double the payload of the beefiest F-35. That makes sense: if you can deliver more firepower per sortie, you can destroy a target with fewer risky flights into enemy airspace. 'The same answers tend to pop up for all,' says Mike Pryce, who has advised Britain's defence ministry on combat air design. 'Stand off, don't be seen, shoot first, don't get into a knife fight.' As the planes get bigger, their insides are also evolving into what are essentially 'flying supercomputers', says Roberto Cingolani, the CEO of Leonardo, an Italian company that is developing the wider Tempest programme along with Britain's BAE Systems and Japan's Mitsubishi. Leonardo says that the Tempest will be able to 'suck up' a medium-sized city's worth of data in one second, according to Tim Robinson of the Royal Aeronautical Society. That could include anything from radio traffic to the emissions of air-defence radars. The point is to share that data with friendly forces, including tanks and ships, says Mr Cingolani, perhaps via satellite, with a 'central artificial intelligence' making decisions—presumably which targets should be attacked, by what, and when. Some might suggest 'that's science fiction,' he says. 'No, that's a vision.' Flying together Perhaps the most contentious design choice is whether sixth-generation planes should have pilots. Elon Musk, Mr Trump's aide, recently mocked the fact that 'Some idiots are still building manned fighter jets.' In practice, most air forces believe that artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomy are not yet mature enough to allow a computer to replace a human pilot entirely; that will take until 2040, reckons the RAF. Images of the F-47, though unreliable guides to the final product, depict 'a relatively large bubble canopy', notes Thomas Newdick of the War Zone, a website, 'providing the pilot with excellent vision'. Some missions are particularly sensitive: France will use the FCAS to deliver nuclear weapons, a task that may always remain a human prerogative. Nevertheless, the prevailing idea is that sixth-generation planes will be the core of a larger 'combat air system', in which a human in the cockpit controls a larger fleet of uncrewed drones, known, in American parlance, as collaborative combat aircraft (CCA). 'The concept is that you have an aircraft-carrier that is flying,' says Mr Cingolani. 'It's an entire fleet that moves in the sky and makes decisions.' The human in the cockpit is best described not as a pilot, says Group Captain Bill, but as a 'weapons system officer', the RAF's term for someone managing sensors and weaponry. On May 1st America's air force announced that it had begun ground testing its two CCA prototypes in advance of flight tests later this year. Current order numbers suggest that each F-47 will get two CCAs. The drones might scout ahead, spot targets or carry weapons themselves—all within line-of-sight and under 'tight control', notes Frank Kendall, a former air-force secretary. Much of the intensive computing required to carry out these tasks will need to take place on board the crewed mothership, with relevant data shared to all craft instantaneously, says Mr Cingolani, speaking in the context of the Tempest. He emphasises that the communication links have to be secure. 'I'm not sure in ten years we can make it.' If he and his company can pull it off, it will cost a pretty penny. Mr Kendall, in the Biden administration, paused the development of the F-47 in large part because it was expected to cost twice as much as the F-35—perhaps as much as $160m-180m apiece—which would mean the government could afford only a small fleet of 200 or so planes. Many in the Pentagon wanted a greater emphasis on building CCAs to complement the existing fleet of F-35s, rather than pouring money into a new platform that might not turn up until long after a war with China. In Britain, Justin Bronk, an air power expert at the Royal United Services Institute, expresses similar concerns, drawing an analogy with the experimental versus war-winning weapons of the second world war. 'Pouring all the money that defence can spare…into a programme that, in the best case, will not deliver a fully operational capability before 2040 feels to me like the UK concentrating all Air Ministry resources on Avro Vulcan development in 1936,' he says, citing a plane that did not appear until a decade after the war was over, 'rather than Hurricanes, Spitfires, Blenheims, Whitleys and Wellingtons.' Get 360° coverage—from daily headlines to 100 year archives.
Daily Express
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
International Dragon Boat Race on May 17
Published on: Wednesday, May 07, 2025 Published on: Wed, May 07, 2025 Text Size: Goh (fourth left) with FCAS Deputy President Datuk Susan Wong (third right) presenting the mock invitation to Musa. Kota Kinabalu: The 10th edition of the International Dragon Boat Race is scheduled to kick off on May 17. The main event and official opening ceremony of the internationally recognised annual sporting competition will be officiated by Head of State Tun Musa Aman on May 18. Organising Chairman Tan Sri Dr TC Goh, who is also the Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS) President, said this year's competition offers a total cash prize pool exceeding RM90,000 across 11 race categories. 'The main category, Piala TYT, will award a cash prize of RM10,000 to the champions. 'Additionally, various other categories are open to encourage broader participation from diverse groups,' he told the media after paying a courtesy call on Musa at the Istana Seri Kinabalu, here, Tuesday. Goh said an estimated 140 teams from local and international participants, including Hong Kong, Brunei and the Philippines, are expected to compete this year, making it one of the largest water sports events in the region. He also extended invitation to all Sabahans, especially those from the West Coast to attend and enliven the carnival-style event, which will feature food stalls, sales booths and family entertainment. 'We anticipate over 10,000 visitors at the Likas Bay throughout the event and hope that it will not only strengthen unity but also boost the local tourism sector,' he said. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Daily Express
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Express
Prelude to upcoming Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah Dragon Boat Race
Published on: Tuesday, May 06, 2025 Published on: Tue, May 06, 2025 Text Size: Liew (middle) receiving a mock invitation from Goh (4th left) and FCAS Deputy President cum Organising Chairperson Datuk Susan Wong (5th right). Looking on are members of the Event Organising Committee. Kota Kinabalu: The Sunset Beach Party to welcome dragon boat race participants at Likas Bay on May 16 is a prelude to the 10th Sabah FCAS International Dragon Boat Race 2025 which kicks off on May 17. It is being organised by the Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS) headed by Tan Sri T.C. Goh. Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Seri Christina Liew has been invited to grace the beach gathering. She hopes this year's dragon boat race, which is divided into 11 categories, will attract more international teams compared to last year's participation. Earlier, it was her suggestion to move the race forward from June to May to coincide with the month-long Pesta Kaamatan celebration. The Head of State is expected to officiate at the final race on May 18. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
