"You will not see us walking on eggs": Continue with the Trident exercise during a safety break

ROCKHAMPTON, Australia: "Tie, tie, tie!" The stifled songs were heard by two rows of soldiers on benches in the middle of a dusty clearing. All had their heads bent over their knees, the rifle between their legs.

A few seconds earlier, the commander of the troops had declared the state of emergency aboard the "helicopter" in which they were, forcing the soldiers to occupy the security position.

Growl soldiers from Shoalwater Bay rehearsed a training simulation for boarding and disembarking helicopter lift elevators, but these safety drills were not on Tuesday morning's agenda (November 6) .

Soldiers of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) reportedly were involved in urban operations with the Australian Defense Forces (ADF) as part of the Trident Exercise, a joint bilateral exercise.

However, due to the delay in the security of the whole army that was put in place after the death of Liu Kai, a full-time national soldier in Singapore, all training was interrupted, including bilateral exercises abroad.

Corporal First Class (CFC) Liu Kai died on Saturday after the overthrow of a Bionix armored vehicle in his Land Rover during a field exercise in the Jalan Murai training area.

READ: Death of NSF: Army Chief Says Security Period Extends to Bilateral Exercises Abroad

In Rockhampton, more than 5,000 km away, the focus of the troops during this period was on strengthening security measures.

For example, troops involved in the Trident exercise have rehearsed how to board and get off helicopters safely, as well as what to do before and after boarding.

Commanders and soldiers of Shoalwater Bay also re-examined and reiterated security measures related to high-risk training activities, such as ship-to-shore operations, long-distance driving on dusty roads and heat damage.

Col Xu You Feng, Commander of 7^th The Singapore Infantry Brigade (SIB) said that once the waiting period called out, it 's regrouped and questioned about how to "get on board". further improve the safety of training.

"I think some of the ideas that came out of the ground (…) we bring a simple innovation from the soldiers to mitigate the risks of training they face," he told reporters at Camp Growl, Tuesday, November 6th.

"For example, we have some combat driving exercises for combat vehicles. For this exercise, no combat vehicles were involved, but we thought these exercises were good and we even applied them to our administrative vehicles. Thus, the administrative transport operators would also perform the same exercises as we usually do only for combat drivers, "Col Xu said.

Convinced that this was a good suggestion that would be implemented after the safety review, the pilot-in-command also provided feedback from the field regarding the prevention of dust clouds while driving.

"Dust clouds are a unique challenge for operations in Shoalwater Bay. Some transport operators therefore suggested fixing improvised mudguards, for example, to vehicles to reduce or minimize dust clouds. This is something we try, which was presented to us, "he added.

The commander stressed that safety "has always been a key element" of the Trident exercise, even before the imposition of the time overrun, due to the complexity of his exercises and his environment and his unfamiliar climate.

"The waiting time for security this year is a sobering reminder of the importance of our security training framework," he said.

He added that, in the end, the waiting time with regard to security had given them the opportunity to be more deliberate during their rehearsals and that they had been engaged in a series of meetings. Exercises more complete.

"Usually we would have just learned the exercises, but because we have the time, we also took the opportunity to teach them and explain the rationale behind some of the exercises. This is something we would not normally have done.

He added, "One of the important points I want to raise is that we remain confident in the safety of our training and that we will not let such incidents prevent us from carrying out difficult and realistic training, even in ways that safe.

"So, when (Tranche of Exercise) will resume – we know that the Trident exercise is a very important training opportunity – you will not see us walking on eggs."

"We will be cautious, we will be careful, but we will continue to try to maximize the educational opportunities – not just for the army, but also for the army." air and the navy. "

Troops will resume training on Thursday after the security period has been lifted.

READ: Army-wide security delay after NSF's death Liu Kai to be lifted Thursday: SAF