A training flight by the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) in Australia has attracted the attention of British and Australian media as a result of the flight route's resemblance to the male anatomy.

How’s this to liven up your Friday? Singapore air force flight path apparently traced a dick-shaped pattern in Western Australian skies. Perhaps practising a response to the next airspace intrusion? 🤭🤣

h/t https://t.co/0UFjgNmVtD pic.twitter.com/ioYSCRVor0

— David Boey (@SenangDiri) September 29, 2023

According to plane tracking site Flightradar24, the aircraft, a Pilatus PC-21, had taken off from the Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF) Base Pearce located in Western Australia on Sep. 28.

It took off at 12:25pm and landed about just over an hour later, at 1:28pm (Western Australia's time zone is the same as Singapore).

At least one Australian media outlet, Perth Now, described the plane's route as "d**k and balls in the sky" and said the Australian Department of Defence had referred it to the Singaporean Embassy for comment about the flight.

RSAF says flight path pattern is "purely coincidental"

On Oct. 1, RSAF put up a post on Facebook in which it said that it was aware of online reports about the flight path.

RSAF explained that training flights are based on "professional training objectives", and include basic aircraft handling manoeuvres, such as turns, instrument approaches and circuit patterns.

It added, "Any resemblance of aircraft flight patterns to images is not intentional and purely coincidental."

The RSAF then posited that the flight path resembled the Microsoft Office mascot, Clippy the paperclip.

RAAF Base Pearce is where RSAF conducts training for its pilots

According to the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), the RAAF Base Pearce is the location of the Flying Training Institute (FTI) Detachment, which is where aspiring pilots of the RSAF are trained.

It is also home to the RSAF's 130 Squadron, as well as the squadron's trainer aircraft.

Usage of the air base dates back to 1993 when Singapore signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Australia, which allows RSAF to maintain and operate a Flying Training Institute there.

In 2018, the MOU was renewed and upgraded to a treaty to extend the RSAF's training at Pearce by another 25 years.

As for the aircraft in question, the RSAF said the Pilatus PC-21 allows pilot trainees to build a "strong foundation" in flying fundamentals, and enables the RSAF to better evaluate the trainees' performance, such that they are more effectively channelled to "various other platforms" for subsequent training phase.

Top left screenshot via flightradar, right photo via RSAF/Facebook