Singapore Armoured Regiment

The Singapore Armoured Regiment is a formation of the Singapore Army responsible for armoured warfare. Armour provides mobile firepower support and rapid mobility for the Army by helping to spearhead an advance past the enemies defences and seizing and holding key objectives on the battlefield. Armour also acts as an active deterrent towards any possible aggressors. Armour is known to act swiftly as they can be deployed at a moment's notice to dominate the battlefield, hence their motto: Swift and Decisive.

Singapore Armoured Regiment
FoundedNovember 1968
Country Singapore
Branch Singapore Army
TypeArmour
RoleHeavy Armour (1 battalion)
Armoured Infantry (3 battalions)
Size4 Armoured Battalions, 2 Active Armoured Brigades, 2 Reserve Armoured Brigades
Part ofSingapore Armed Forces
Garrison/HQKeat Hong Camp
Sungei Gedong Camp
Nickname(s)Armour Mafia Family, Once Armour Always Armour, The Force The Family The Future
Motto(s)Swift and Decisive[1]
AnniversariesArmour Black Day (February)
EquipmentLeopard 2SG,[2] Bionix AFV, Bronco ATTC, M113[1]
Commanders
Chief Armour OfficerCOL Goh Si Mien [1]
Insignia
Identification
symbol		Black Beret

History

The Singapore Army's first armoured unit, 40 Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (SAR) (then known as 40 Singapore Armoured Battalion (SAB)), was formed in November 1968. In that year, the Army decided to purchase the V-200 Commando vehicles and AMX-13 tanks. 41 SAB was formed to operate AMX-13 tanks in 1969 and was the first armour unit to be equipped with the tanks.[3] The V-200 Commando vehicles were shared between 40 and 41 SAB.[4]

That same year, 40 SAB thrilled the crowd at the Singapore National Day Parade in a drive-past of 18 tanks to salute the President of Singapore.[5] HQ Armour has since organised armour column drive-pasts during the National Day Parades of 1978, 1982, 1984, 1993, 2002 & 2010. Additionally, during every National Day Parade, men of the formation are given the honour of the Presidential Lance Guards who will form up upon the President's arrival and departure. They carry lances with a pennon that features the insignia of the Armour formation attached beneath the spearhead. This tradition is modelled after the knights of old, who would form up to protect their king.

The AMX-13 which was acquired back in 1969 was upgraded to the AMX-13 SM1 in 1988.[6]

In July 1970, with the creation of 4 SAB, 40 & 41 were re-flagged as 40 SAR & 41 SAR respectively. Two further armoured units were created: 42 SAR in 1971 & 46 SAR in 1976. With the inception of full-time national service in 1967, 40 SAR received her first mono intake in March 1970 while 41 SAR received hers in July 1970.

In 1973, the formation acquired the M113 to replace the V-200 Commando, which was further upgraded to the M113A2 Ultra IFV in 1993 to keep up with the modern age.[1]

The Regimental Colours of 40, 41 and 42 SAR were presented by President Benjamin Sheares at Selarang Camp on 6 September 1977. 46 SAR's Regimental Colours were presented to them on 29 October 1991.[7] 48 SAR's Regimental Colours was presented by President Tony Tan on 1 July 2013 at that year's SAF day parade.

In 2006, it was announced that the AMX-13 SM1 Tanks would be replaced with Germany's Leopard 2A4 Main Battle Tanks.[8]

The formation also adopted the Black Beret as its official headdress, which is recognised traditionally as a symbol of an armoured unit.

In the Singapore Armed Forces Best Unit Competition, only 5 Armour units have won the title of Best Combat Unit: 41 SAR (1978 & 1984), 42 SAR (1979 & 1982) & 40 SAR (2002).

Structure

There are currently 3 armoured infantry battalions in its operational structure: 40 SAR, 41 SAR & 42 SAR.

There is another additional tank battalion, 48 SAR. There are also a number of NS Reserve battalions that are activated during reservist recalls. NS SAR units are numbered in three-digit formats (i.e. 442 SAR) to distinguish them from active units.

An armoured infantry battalion is made up of 5 companies: HQ coy, 3 combat coys and a support coy.

  • The HQ company encompasses the battalion's Intelligence Branch, Manpower Branch, Training & Operation Branch, Logistics Branch, Signal Branch, Quartermaster Branch, Motor Transport, Tracked Vehicle Maintenance Branch and Medical Platoon.
  • The combat companies are made up of three platoons and a company HQ platoon
  • The Support Company encompasses the following elements: Mortar, Pioneer/Engineer, ATGM and Reconnaissance.

While on operation, each combat team will be attached with a vehicle maintenance and Pioneer section. The ATGM & Mortar elements can be attached to either combat company at their commanders direction depending on mission profiles.

Armoured Infantry (A.I.) battalions share similar traits with their regular infantry counterparts. However, each section of an A.I. platoon has their own individual armoured tracked platform and A.I. platoons carry more firepower when dismounted as compared to regular infantry platoons. A.I platoons also specialise in conducting water-body crossing with their armoured platforms by flotation devices.

During training or operations, external units, such as the Combat Engineers' Armoured vehicle-launched bridge and mine clearance vehicles or the Artillery's self-propelled howitzers, can be attached to the armour battalions as needed. When required by the nature of operations, heavy tanks can also be attached to the A.I. battalions.

Units

Brigades

  • HQ 4th Singapore Armoured Brigade
    • Motto: Terror On Tracks
    • Sungei Gedong Camp
  • HQ 8th Singapore Armoured Brigade
    • Motto: Valiant Thrust
    • Keat Hong Camp, under HQ 3 DIV
  • HQ 54th Singapore Armoured Brigade
    • Motto: We Spearhead
    • Kranji Camp II, under HQ 6 DIV
  • HQ 56th Singapore Armoured Brigade
    • Motto: Bold and Decisive
    • Selarang Camp, under HQ 9 DIV


Battalions[9]

  • 40th Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (under 8 SAB, 3 DIV)
    • Motto: Victory Unto Victory
    • Yellow Frills on its Battalion's Regimental Color with the number '40' on the top left corner
    • Keat Hong Camp
  • 41st Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (under 8 SAB, under 3 DIV)
    • Motto: Pressure Forward
    • Red Frills on its Battalion's Regimental Colors with the number '41' on the top left corner
    • Keat Hong Camp
  • 42nd Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment
    • Motto: The Cutting Edge
    • Green Frills on its Battalion's Regimental Colors with the number '42' on the top left corner
    • Sungei Gedong Camp
  • 48th Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (non-divisional unit)
    • Motto: Rapid Dominance
    • Yellow Border on Black Shield with the number '48' on the top right corner
    • Sungei Gedong Camp

Headquarters
  • Keat Hong Camp - 40 SAR, 41 SAR, 8 SAB
  • Sungei Gedong Camp - HQ Armour, 4 SAB, 42 SAR, 48 SAR, ATI

Armour Creed

The Armour Creed details the motto of the Armour "Swift and Decisive" and the roles Armour plays within the Army.

We are Armour,

Swift and Decisive,
We are the Masters of Manoeuvre
We Dislocate And Defeat The Enemy with Speed,
Precision and Firepower.

We Are The Decisive Force Of Our Army,
We wear our Black Berets with Pride,
Forging Man and Machine as One.

We Are One Family,
Forever Strong In Spirit.

Once Armour!

Always Armour!

Equipment

Units within the Regiment use a wide range of vehicles, supporting its scope of armoured combat and engineering missions. This includes locally developed armoured platforms such as the Bionix IFV, Hunter AFV and Bronco ATTC, as well as procured overseas equipment upgraded to fit local operation context.[10][11]

Vehicle Image Type Quantity Origin Notes Ref
Tanks
Leopard 2SG Main battle tank 204+[12][13]  Germany Upgraded with AMAP composite armour by IBD & ST Kinetics. Includes 30 spare tanks, excludes 19 Bergepanzer-3 Büffel ARVs.[10] [14]
Armoured vehicle
Hunter AFV Infantry fighting vehicle 3  Singapore Production and operational model revealed in June 2019. More on order to replace M113 APC.
Bionix II Infantry fighting vehicle 300[15]  Singapore Variants include Bionix 40/50, Bionix 25. [16]
M113A2 Ultra IFV + M113A2 Ultra OWS Armoured personnel carrier 720[15]  USA
 Singapore		 Originally an M113A1, upgraded to A2 standard. Also used by the RSAF as SHORAD system. [14]
Bronco All Terrain Tracked Carrier Amphibious armoured vehicle 400[15]  Singapore [16]
Bandvagn 206 Armoured all-terrain carrier 300[15]  Sweden Artillery versions mounted with ARTHUR (radar). Most units have been retired. Some retired units transferred to the Singapore Civil Defence Force for jungle firefighting operations as a Tracked Firefighting Vehicle (TFV). [16]
Engineering vehicles
Pionierpanzer AEV3 Kodiak Armoured combat engineering vehicle unknown  Germany AEV based on the Leopard 2A4 chassis.
Bergepanzer Büffel Armoured recovery vehicle 20  Germany ARV based on the Leopard 2A4 chassis.
Panzerschnellbrücke Leguan Armoured vehicle-launched bridge 10  Germany AVLB based on the Leopard 2A4 chassis. [14]
Bionix Trailblazer Armoured combat engineering vehicle unknown  Singapore
Bionix ARV Armoured combat engineering vehicle unknown  Singapore
Bionix BLB Armoured vehicle-launched bridge unknown  Singapore
FV180 Tractor Armoured combat engineering vehicle 36  UK Phased out. [14]
M60 AVLB Armoured vehicle-launched bridge 12  USA [14]
M728 Armoured combat engineering vehicle 8  USA Phased out. [14]
SM1 AVLB Armoured vehicle-launched bridge unknown  France Singapore Phased out.

Training

There are two main combat vocations within Armour: Tank Operator and Armoured Infantry. Each personnel's vocation varies depending on which unit he is posted to. Tank operators will be trained to maintain and fire the tank, while armoured infanteers will be trained in basic infantry and armoured warfare tactics.

The Armour formation's main training institute is called the Armour Training Institute (ATI), in Sungei Gedong Camp, which trains and evaluates all active and NS Armour units.[17]

The four schools under ATI are:

  • School of Armour (SOA)
    • Motto: Lead By Example
    • Conducts Armour Leadership courses for both the Officer and Specialist cadets in their respective vocations in the formation.
  • Armoured Battle Group Training Centre (ABGTC)
    • Conducts Armour Battle Groups Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTP)
  • Armour Combat Training Centre (ACTC)
    • Qualification centre for all Armour platforms and weapon systems courses
  • Combat Team Training Centre (CTTC)
    • Training and evaluation for Combat Teams and Main Battle Tank Company level and below

ATI maintains a combat armoured infantry company containing three platoons to play the role of aggressors, otherwise known as OPFOR, against active and reserve units during ATEC evaluation. Their role is to simulate a real enemy force through the use of the battlefield instrumentation (BFI) system.[18]

Exercise

The formation conducts numerous overseas training exercises for its armour units to practice due to lack of manoeuvre area in Singapore.

  • Exercise Wallaby (Australia)
    • An annual military exercise conducted at Shoalwater Bay towards the end of the year. Armour units can conduct either live firing drills with other militaries or their own ATEC evaluations or play the role of an armour aggressor unit. Officer and Specialist cadets on training can also be sent on exercise as part of their training program.[19]
  • Exercise Matilda (Australia)
  • Exercise Bold Kurukshetra (India)
    • An exercise where an armoured infantry combat company from an active battalion and other support elements are sent to India for a military exchange with armoured units from the Indian Army.[21]
  • Exercise Panzer Strike (Germany)
    • An exercise held in Bergen, Germany, where the heavy tank battalion, 48 SAR, as well as Officer and Specialist Cadets from the School of Armour hone their gunnery and driving skills at the Bundeswehr's Bergen-Hohne Training Area, which allows them to fire on the move and practice platoon movements. 48 SAR also conducts bilateral live-firing exercises with the German Army.[1]

References
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  10. "The Leopard 2A4 Main Battle Tank: More Bite and Firepower for Our Armour". Ministry of Defence, Singapore. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  11. "SAF unveils the Hunter – the Army's first fully digital fighting vehicle". CNA. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  12. Yeo, Mike (25 February 2019). "German documents reveal Singapore received more Leopard 2 tanks". Defense News.
  14. "SIPRI arms transfer database". Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  15. https://www.armyrecognition.com/singapore_singaporean_army_land_ground_forces_uk/singapore_singaporean_army_land_ground_forces_military_equipment_armoured_armored_vehicle_uk.html
  16. Jane's World Armies 2017
  17. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2019.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2019.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 24 January 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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