SINGAPORE, US CONDUCT SUCCESSFUL BILATERAL AIR-LAND LIVE-FIRING

A thunderous boom, and bright orange flames flew over the mountainous terrain. Explosions followed, and an armoured column of enemy tanks was destroyed.

It was a seamless effort as the Singapore Armed Forces" (SAF"s) and the United States (US) Army"s High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) worked hand-in-hand to take out the targets.

Almost simultaneously, two Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) AH-64D Apache helicopters appeared on scene and fired rapid gunshots at the same area, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. The enemy never stood a chance.

Witnessed by Senior Minister of State for Defence Ong Ye Kung, this integrated air-land strike was part of an exercise scenario played out at Exercise Daring Warrior on 28 Oct in Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Held from 10 to 31 Oct, the bilateral annual exercise involved about 340 SAF personnel and 140 troops from the US.

The assets deployed in the exercise included the HIMARS and the Artillery Hunting Radar (ARTHUR) from the Singapore Army, and Apache helicopters from the RSAF"s Peace Vanguard detachment. The US assets were from the US Army"s 75th Field Artillery Brigade and the National Guard.

Commenting on the close working relationship between the two forces, Mr Ong said: "Today we fired six rounds three from the US forces and three from us. This is unprecedented. It shows the tight ties we have operationally (and) the cooperation at a broad level between the US and Singapore armed forces."

Mr Ong said the integration of various assets from the Commandos to the Apache helicopters showcased the SAF"s capability to operate as an effective system in a complex environment. He also noted that the tight integration between the Army and the RSAF was a reflection of the complexity of modern warfare today, and commended the exercise participants on their dedication.

"This (exercise) is not possible without (our US) partners and without our capable commanders and very dedicated men and women. This is something that we should be really proud of," he said.

Colonel (COL) Stephen J. Maranian, Commandant of the US Field Artillery, also highlighted the value of Exercise Daring Warrior.

Referring to Singapore and the SAF as a great partner, he said: "Exercise Daring Warrior has been ongoing for six years, and our nations have worked together very closely. The three launchers from Singapore and the three launchers from the US firing simultaneously and having tremendous impact, it"s proof of what partnership and interoperability do when you work closely."

During his visit, Mr Ong also observed an Apache AH-64D live firing mission with live tracking by the ARTHUR, tried his hands at firing from a HIMARS and interacted with exercise participants.

Heart of operations

Aside from the live-firing components, the large-scale exercise saw SAF Commandos and Strike Observer Mission (STORM) teams coming into play. It was also a capability test for the coordinators at the Division Strike Centre (DSC).

Functioning as both a command post and headquarters, the DSC is made up of personnel who coordinate and orchestrate the whole mission, from tracking to calling for an attack. For this year"s exercise, the DSC personnel comprised troops from the 6th Singapore Division.

Exercise Director and Chief Artillery Officer COL Michael Ma noted that the scenarios presented to the DSC were very challenging, and that personnel were kept on their toes all the time to ensure mission success within a short period of time.

"It"s challenging as they do not know where the enemy is, and they do not know when the enemy will show itself," said COL Ma.

"And when the enemy does show itself, they have to coordinate and integrate various assets like the Apaches, HIMARS and STORM teams on the ground to ensure the whole process is executed seamlessly in a matter of minutes."

National duties

This year"s DSC was largely made up of Operationally-ready National Servicemen (NSmen) who were handling up to 15 different missions a day as the intensity and complexity of scenarios increased.

Said Captain (CPT) (NS) Bryan Lim: "Each mission requires a lot of coordination between different assets and units, and time is always against us when it comes to engaging the targets."

The Head of Targeting Management Team in the DSC admitted that it was stressful as he and his team had to constantly analyse if the target was the right one to engage, weigh decisions and calculate the time required for the ammunitions to hit the target.

For Apache pilot Major (MAJ) Lim Wei Meng, one of the challenges for this exercise was communicating with his NSmen counterparts in the DSC when it came to getting the coordinates for the targets. But through constant meetings and reviewing of missions, differences were ironed out and communication became much smoother.

"For some of the NSmen, this is the first time that they are controlling live fire and assets, and they"re not used to (the tempo) of operations," explained MAJ Lim.

"Working with them may not be the easiest, but this makes our training more enriching as we know that these NSmen are .ready for the mission."

Bilateral interactions

Aside from training together with the NSmen, MAJ Lim also sees value in interacting with his US counterparts. When it comes to mission tie-up and coordination, the pilots from the Peace Vanguard"s US Army Flight Training Detachment will give their inputs, and tactics are refined.

He said: "Their combat experience is something that Singaporean pilots have not experienced (and) the tactics that they employ, especially in the heat of battle, are very applicable to us."

COL Maranian also expressed his hope for greater and deeper cooperation between the two countries" armed forces. "The relations between our nations have always been exceptional, and exercises like this reinforce that. Be it at the national level or even to the lowest level of soldier to soldier, we are close," he said.

"I would expect our great partnership to continue, and I hope that this exercise endures for many years to come."