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Straits Times 5 Sep 05 Work starts on new SAF camp in Tekong Site will double available training area, with less need to train overseas By David Boey Sept 5, 2005 LAND available for military training will almost double next June, once a new field camp on Pulau Tekong and newly-reclaimed land there are added to areas where Singapore Armed Forces units can conduct battle manoeuvres. The Ministry of Defence said the expanded training areas should allow the SAF to conduct more training locally - 'thereby cutting back on the need to train overseas'. A news update on Mindef's website said work on the new facility, called San Yang Kong Field Camp, began on Aug 26 when Chief of Army, Major-General Desmond Kuek, drove in the first pile for the camp's foundation. Speaking at the camp's foundation-laying ceremony, Maj-Gen Kuek said: 'Pulau Tekong will be landscaped and crafted to meet future training needs. This will allow units to train for extended periods without the need to return to the mainland.' SAF Combat Engineers are building the camp on the southern part of Pulau Tekong, Singapore's largest offshore island. Facilities there include low-rise barracks, dining areas, training sheds and vehicle parking areas. San Yang Kong Field Camp, named after a former kampung on Pulau Tekong, will be located close to SAF training areas on reclaimed land there. SAF units now conduct battle manoeuvres using helicopters, vehicles and troops on some 5,700ha of land set aside for military training. Places like Pasir Laba and Sungei Gedong on mainland Singapore will complement new facilities being built on Tekong. Mindef said the new camp and adjacent grounds on Tekong would add another 5,600ha to SAF training areas, 'almost doubling the current land available'. But defence observers note that constraints on firing artillery and manoeuvring armoured vehicles in Singapore mean the SAF will continue to value access to military training grounds in countries such as Australia, Brunei, India, New Zealand and Thailand. Pulau Tekong has been used exclusively for military training since the early 1980s, when civilians there were relocated to the mainland. The island is home to the SAF's Basic Military Training Centre, which imparts newly-enlisted national servicemen with basic military skills that teach them how to shoot, move and survive in battle. The new field camp will be used by SAF Infantry battalions as well as Guards units. The latter are infantry trained to go into battle on-board helicopters. Full-time national servicemen and operationally ready NSmen will train there for up to two weeks at a stretch. Maj-Gen Kuek said: 'The rugged design of the camp will train resilience and build camaraderie among the troops as they experience operations in a challenging field environment.' . links Related articles on Singapore: general environmental issues |
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