Lim Kim Choon () is a Singaporean former civil servant and former major-general who served as Chief of Air Force between 2001 and 2006.

Education

Lim studied at

Raffles Institution Raffles Institution (RI) is an independent educational institution in Singapore. Founded in 1823, it is the oldest school in the country. It provides secondary education for boys only from Year 1 to Year 4, and pre-university education for both b ...

, and was awarded the

Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship The SAF Scholarship, formerly known as the SAF Overseas Scholarship (SAFOS), is a scholarship conferred by the Public Service Commission (PSC). The scholarship is second in prestige to the President's Scholarship. Scholars are groomed for the h ...

in 1977 to study

production engineering Manufacturing engineering or production engineering is a branch of professional engineering that shares many common concepts and ideas with other fields of engineering such as mechanical, chemical, electrical, and industrial engineering. Manufac ...

Loughborough University Loughborough University (abbreviated as ''Lough'' or ''Lboro'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public university, public research university in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. It has been a university sinc ...

, where he obtained a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

. He also holds a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

in management from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

. He also attended the Air Command and Staff Course at the

Air Command and Staff College The Air Command and Staff College (ACSC) is located at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama and is the United States Air Force's intermediate-level Professional Military Education (PME) school. It is a subordinate command of the Air Un ...

, and a six-week Advanced Management Program in

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

in 2009.

Military career

Lim enlisted in the

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A component of the Ministry of Defence (Singapore), Ministry of D ...

in December 1976 and served in the

Republic of Singapore Air Force The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the aerial service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for controlling and defending the airspace of the country, and providing air support to the Army and Navy. It was establis ...

(RSAF) as an

F-16 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it e ...

pilot. Throughout his military career, he held various appointments, including: Head, Air Intelligence Department; Head, Air Operations Department; Deputy Commander,

Tengah Air Base The Tengah Air Base is a military airbase of the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) located in the Western Water Catchment, in the western part of Singapore. The air base is the most important airfield of the RSAF as it houses the majo ...

; Commander,

; Chief of Staff (Air Staff). He was appointed as the Chief of Air Force on 1 April 2001, succeeding

Raymund Ng Raymund Ng Teck Heng is a Singaporean former Major general, major-general who served as Chief of Air Force (Singapore), Chief of Air Force from 1998 to 2001. Education Ng attended St. Gabriel's Secondary School and National Junior College. I ...

. During his tenure as Chief, the RSAF acquired various new systems, such as the F-15SG,

AH-64D Apache Longbow The Hughes/McDonnell Douglas/Boeing AH-64 Apache ( ) is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear and a tandem cockpit for a crew of two. Nose-mounted sensors help acquire targets and provide night vis ...

and

SH-60 Seahawk The Sikorsky SH-60/MH-60 Seahawk (or Sea Hawk) is a twin turboshaft engine, multi-mission United States Navy helicopter based on the United States Army UH-60 Black Hawk and a member of the Sikorsky S-70 family. The most significant modificati ...

. Lim also directed the RSAF in humanitarian assistance operations, such as Operation Flying Eagle in Aceh, Indonesia in 2005 and Singapore's response in the aftermath of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

in 2005. On 1 July 2002, Lim was promoted from the rank brigadier-general to major-general. Lim retired on 24 March 2006 and was succeeded by

Ng Chee Khern Ng Chee Khern (born 18 October 1965) is a Singaporean civil servant and former major-general who served as Chief of Air Force between 2006 and 2009. He previously served as Permanent Secretary (Smart Nation and Digital Government) under th ...

as the Chief of Air Force.

Post-military career

Lim joined the

Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) is Singapore's civil aviation authority and a statutory board under the Ministry of Transport of the Government of Singapore. Its head office is located on the fourth storey of Singapore Cha ...

on 2 May 2006 and was appointed as the director-general on 1 July 2007, before stepping down from the position on 1 July 2009.

Awards and decorations

* Public Administration Medal (Military) (Gold), in 2003. * Public Administration Medal (Military) (Silver), in 1996. * Long Service Medal (Military), in 2002. *

Singapore Armed Forces Long Service and Good Conduct (20 Years) Medal The Singapore Armed Forces Long Service and Good Conduct (20 Years) Medal is a decoration awarded to a member of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) (regardless of regular or NSmen status) who has completed 20 years of continuous service. A clasp ...

* Singapore Armed Forces Long Service and Good Conduct (10 Years) Medal with 15 year clasp * Singapore_Armed_Forces_Good_Service_Medal_ribbon

Singapore Armed Forces Good Service Medal * Legion_Honneur_Commandeur_ribbon

Legion D'Honneur (Commandeur), in 2004. * Bintang_Swa_Bhuana_Paksa_Utama

Bintang Swa Bhuwana Paksa Utama (1st Class), in 2005. * US_Legion_of_Merit_Commander_rib

Commander of the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, in 2006.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lim, Kim Choon Living people Singaporean civil servants Singaporean military leaders Chiefs of the Republic of Singapore Air Force Alumni of Loughborough University Singaporean chief executives MIT Sloan School of Management alumni 1958 births Raffles Institution alumni Recipients of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Pingat Pentadbiran Awam (Tentera) Singaporean people of Chinese descent