Bey Soo Khiang (born 10 August 1955) is a Singaporean former

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

who served as Chief of Defence Force between 1995 and 2000. He was the first Chief of Air Force to serve as Chief of Defence Force.

Education

Bey 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 hi ...

in 1974. He holds

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

and

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degrees in engineering from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. He also completed a

Master of Public Administration The Master of Public Administration (M.P.Adm., M.P.A., or MPA) is a specialized higher professional post graduate degree in public administration, similar/ equivalent to the Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the issues of ...

degree at the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, and attended the six-week Advanced Management Program at

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

Military career

Bey enlisted into the

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

(SAF) in 1973. Prior to his appointment as Chief of Defence Force on 1 July 1995, Bey served as Chief of Air Force. In addition to his career in the SAF, Bey was also appointed to Singapore Technologies Engineering and Singapore Airlines Limited's Board of Directors while serving as Chief of Defence Force. Bey retired from the SAF on 1 April 2000, and was succeeded by

Lim Chuan Poh Lim Chuan Poh is a Singaporean civil servant, diplomat and former lieutenant-general who served as Chief of Defence Force (Singapore), Chief of Defence Force between 2000 and 2003. After leaving the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 2003, Lim ser ...

as Chief of Defence Force.

Post-military career

After leaving the SAF in 2000, Bey joined

Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines (abbreviation: SIA) is the flag carrier airline of the Republic of Singapore with its Airline hub, hub located at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline is notable for highlighting the Singapore Girl as its central figure in ...

(SIA) as Executive Vice President (Technical) and was promoted to Senior EVP (Technical & Human Resources) two years later. During his time in SIA, he led the project to introduce the

Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...

into SIA and also served in the following positions: Chairman of SIA Cargo Pte Ltd; Chairman of Silkair Pte Ltd; Chairman of Singapore Flying College; Board Director of SIA Engineering Company; Virgin Atlantic Limited; Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited; Virgin Travel Group Limited. He is also an active board member in the

Sentosa Development Corporation Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Government of Singapore. Purpose Islands The Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) was formed on 1 September 1972. Its main task is to ...

. In early 2010, he assumed the post of Senior Executive Vice President for Marketing & Corporate Services. Bey left SIA on 28 February 2011. Bey was appointed as the Vice-Chairman of RGE Pte Ltd in March 2011.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bey, Soo Khiang Living people Singaporean businesspeople Singaporean people of Chinese descent Chief of the Republic of Singapore Air Force Harvard Kennedy School alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge Chiefs of Defence Force (Singapore) 1955 births