A WARM WELCOME HOME FOR RSS RESOLUTION

After a three-month deployment in the North Arabian Gulf in support of the multinational reconstruction efforts in Iraq, the crew of RSS Resolution were finally home as the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) Landing Ship Tank (LST) sailed into Changi Naval Base on 20 Dec.

There to welcome them home that morning was a cheering and emotional crowd of family and friends. Also present was Chief of Navy, Rear-Admiral (RADM) Chew Men Leong, who presented letters of appreciation to the mission members.

Congratulating the crew for a job well done, RADM Chew expressed his heartfelt appreciation for the support shown by their family members.

"Your support has allowed the servicemen and women to remain focused on the mission. Your sacrifices and encouragement have been a very important source of strength for them," he said.

Looking forward to having a nice dinner with his wife and one-year-old son was First Sergeant (1SG) Toh Yew Wan, who told cyberpioneer that while he missed his loved ones, he gained another caring family overseas - his fellow crew members, who looked out for one another during the deployment.

Regular correspondence over the phone and through the Internet also helped to ease his wife's concerns about his safety and well-being.

Commenting on his maiden participation in a mission to the Gulf, the Weapons Electronic Specialist Petty Officer said: "It was a great eye-opener. I gained a lot of experience through this operation as well as the training prior to it. It was really amazing to fly the Singapore flag high overseas."

Undertaking tasks such as protecting the waters surrounding key oil terminals, conducting patrols and boarding operations, as well as providing logistics support for the coalition vessels and helicopters, RSS Resolution and its 180-strong crew also performed as the scene-of-action commander for a significant period of time.

This entails taking command of multinational ships from established navies such as Australia and the United States, and making sure that they were well-disposed to protect the oil terminal under their charge, revealed Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Lee Joan Hin, Commanding Officer of RSS Resolution.

Commending them on a job well-done, Commander Task Force (CTF) 158 from the Royal Australian Navy, Commodore Bruce Kafer, said: "RSS Resolution has made a critical contribution to CTF 158's mission of safeguarding Iraqi waterways and infrastructure protection."

The CTF is the maritime component of the multinational task force assisting in the reconstruction of Iraq by protecting the nation's vital oil infrastructure and carrying out maritime security operations in the North Arabian Gulf.