Originally posted by LazerLordz:

Wrong. It is up to your immediate superior to determine if you can go off earlier for classes.

In the case of night classes, you can go, but should you have duty, duty comes first.

I think it is only of privilege that any servicemen are granted for night classes/courses and any other activities by their superior. It is mandatory to serve. The thread starter feels like taking up PT degree course and assume that if his posting is 8-5 vocation, it will enhance his chances.

Originally posted by Devil1976:

My friend's helmet has BIG "SM GOH" on it...

Armour last time got an instructor that bears the same name as our MM ... SSG Lee Kuan Yew, he was then the SOA trainer.

Originally posted by Chris1988:

just a short introduction about myself.

just OOTed after a week in BMT and got posted to a unit 1 week later.

am currently doing OETI (Comms). my course officially starts on the 22nd Dec and ends 3 months later. subsequently will be having OJE (On Job Experience) for 2 months and afterwhich i guess that's when i'll be posted to my 'permanent' unit.

i feel like doing a part-time degree during this period of time but i'm not sure if my final posting will be a 8-5 vocation as well. need advice on this

medical status: currently a sufferer from discoid eczema and had an asthma relapse just 2 days ago

You are serving a National Service. Even if your vocation is 8-5, you are still require to report back to camp as and when require. MINDEF will not give any special grant to you for studies despite all reasons.

Last time my unit got a tank PC by the name of "Rod Loh" which he sew on his name tag ...

Originally posted by iamFunkydude:

hey people. jus wondering if any1 of you have heard of any generals who are not SAFOS or MERIT scholars. thx.

Not sure how true is this (dun quote me) ... when I was still serving NSF, came across from someone that BG (Rtd) Patrick Choy from the Armour formation has only "O" levels ... he is now an EVP at ST Kinetics...

Originally posted by decay:

I sent in my application 2 times for this case, once with MP endorsement and both time I get the reason rejected - work commitment is not an excuse. Do they even read the reasons? Both have been rejected by my CO. When I call mindef hotline to ask what can I do next. They told me "even MP also cannot.. I think you send in another application lor". With this type of hotline, no wonder ppl are killing themself even after calling hotline....

I also tried deferring an overseas ICT in 2006 ... ATEC 2 ... send 4 appeals which include endorsement by MP but still rejected ... I TL wrote directly to Teo Chee Hean and cc my MP ... also kana rejected as Teo forwarded my mail back to NSSC ... LPPL ..

Originally posted by decay:

I have checked with the unit and there is no important exercise...

Strange ... normally when an NS unit rejected a deferment, the common reason is the lack of strength or there is an extensive logistic preparation done, and cancellation due to absentees will be questioned by the relevant deparment (G4?) for all the planning done ... moreover your letter is endorsed by MP .. still rejected ... 

Originally posted by Gloater:

Another thing. This Lim Teck Yin is from Commando?! it's very true that commando officers very very hard to be general. That's because Commandos are way too specialised, and they're like in their own little world, their own little clique with their own spirit blah blah, totally ostracised and detached from the SAF.  

Lim Teck Yin was trained as a Commando. He moved on to be converted as Armour officer about 10 years ago ... as such, he managed to climb further up on his SAF career ladder now ...

Originally posted by decay:

This is absolutely ridiculous. I have tried to defer my NS citing my company factory opening ceremony in China to get deferment since I have to give presentation and entertain our VIPs and our dear SAF rejected my deferment even with an appeal from MP.

Your ICT must be some important exercise? If not, normally SAF will not reject with valid reason ... or your deferment sent in at the very last hour?

BG Lim TY underwent his AOCC in the mid 90s and posted to 46SAR as CO after his conversion ... I believe his AOCC was a superficial one just to familarise him on voice command and fighting techniques in an Ultra M113 vehicle. During his stinct at 46SAR, he continued to don his red beret and I think was being told off by a higher rank officer (this is what I heard from the ATC trainers when back for ICT). He then changed to wear a black one after that incident.

He moved up later on as brigade commander but did not manage to climb further to become CAO as during that regime, there are Bernard Tan and Wong Ann Chai waiting to take over Desmond Kwek or Ong Boon Hwee (can't remember which exactly) when either relinguish the role of CAO.

Originally posted by tarutaru:

This is a story by my friend, BMT in Nee Soon Camp, one of their PTI's favourite PT is to run to touch the lamp post with the number of the pizza hut number.

The 6 lamp posts in the field reminds me of my BMT there at 7BTS and tekan session by the PTI, 2SG Ong aka Monkey God

Army Half Marathon always reminds me of the dead of a PTE marshalling soldier from 40SAR back in 1995 where he was killed by a speeding car at Fort Road on the early morning for this event.

When I was in Sai Yok camp in end March 2001. the temperature daily was 42degC at 11am. Between 1-4pm, the temperature rised till almost 45degC. Buay tahan, one day can finished 6 bottles of those 1 litre mineral water bought from the canteen and managed to pee no more than times a day as the body fluid dehydrated.

While in camp doing nothing for the 1st 5-6 days as I'm umpire, everyone can shower at least 5 times. However, the temperature at night did not drop much, still the same kind of weather as in SGP.

But it was quite a memorable trip esp those mobile canteen and children carrying bags of cold drinks to sell while the troops were flanking up the knoll.

I was at Sai Yok camp in 2001 as ATEC umpire. The weather really kills ... I think the troops are fighting the heat more than the enemies.

Originally posted by jasonsamster:

What are the record timings for SOC and 2.4km run in history of SAF?

When I was doing my BMT in 7BTS, my instructor once told our platoon that the CO then, LTC Lee Chong Kiat, a red beret, holds the SOC record for running a 5 mins ++ timing ... but i guess the record was broken by a PTI.

Originally posted by devonise:

If like wad your CO said, focus on the number of years, den it will be damn unfair for those like me who already clocked say 4 high keys and 3 low keys with another 2 high keys coming soon. Even if i managed to clock 7 high keys and 3 low keys b4 30 yrs old, does it means i will still be called up until when i reach 40 yrs? If so den i will try deferring the next time i received called up since no matter hw many high keys or low keys u clocked, u will still received call ups.

Under the new system, NSmen need to do a minimum of 7H3L. If you are not an appointment holders like CSM, Coy 2IC, OC, normally they will not disturb you anymore once you hit the min requirement to phase into MR.

Take note that if you do not hit the 7H3L, you cannot phase into MR and you will need to take your IPPT annually (unless IPPT is chicken feet to you). My unit did well in ATEC 2 and the CO decided to change the last high key ICT to a low key ICT.

My advise is to finish off early and FO from SAF.

Originally posted by ^tamago^:

the old keat hong camp.

Agree to that .... Old Keat Hong Camp, home of the 40SAR and 8SAB ... 10 mins walk to CCK station

Originally posted by cookie_cookie:

i was absolutely shocked by your information and went to google. Sure enough BG Wong Ann Chai is now MD at DBS bank!!!!! this is shocking. Usually men of his profile (PS, SAFOS) go to civil service, become deputy secretary or perm sec or CEO of GLC or stat board.

If my information is not wrong, BG(NS) Wong Ann Chai probably is the first PS cum SAFOS who lead and attained RECON 1 in ATEC evaluation when he was with 40SAR back in 1996.

Originally posted by Master -_-:

president's scholar..

Bg Singh stands a good chance..around 90%...

MG Neo is from Gds..

BG Bernard most likely posted to Civil Service boards after his tenure...

So it stands, either BG Singh or BG Hugh...BG Hugh (considered one of the "laojiao" BGs around along with BG Singh)

The current post BG Singh is holding looks promising to be the next COA. BG Bernard Tan has been the Director of Joint Intelligience for quite a while after he passed his CAO baton to BG Wong Ann Chai (another PS cum SAFOS) few years back. BG Wong I think already went into the private practice.

Most AIs & tankees started off from mono-intakes. My route to Armour is a not so common one ... My BMT was trained by Guards personnel, then kana to Armour for trade course, bla bla bla and eventually became roving team, became instructor and commander at 3 different Armour units before ORD. During reservist, join an unit half way through their 13 cycles with no one I knew, then when the unit stand down, i hop to another unit.

Are there still roving teams now?

I even slept on top of the pile of concertina wire(of course wrapped with sandbag) on the way back to Pasir Laba in a 3-tonner when I was the store party after the nutcracker exercise during ISL course.

Originally posted by edwin3060:

The Ranger course not only teaches skills that can be applied at the small unit level but a mindset and mental toughness that is useful anywhere. Also, I think that the Ranger course is becoming more noticed because both COA and Chief Armour are Rangers. I have seen an Infantry Ranger so I know its possible Hope I get the chance to go.

You can hardly find an Armour trained Ranger nowadays. Those lao-jiao AI vocation Rangers(mostly WOs) are almost reaching their retirement period, most if not all have spend at least 20-25 years in the force already.

Originally posted by Short Ninja:

One of the very few Commandos I know who wears the color of the beret according to the unit.

When COL (then MAJ) Lim Teck Yin converted to become CO of 46SAR, he was still wearing his red beret till I think kana from brigade commander, then he don black beret till now.

Originally posted by will4:

How many of u here have not attended a single reservist activity for many years example for about six to seven years since completing full time NS?

What are the main reason for NSAD for not calling up these reservist for many years until they reached early thirty or mid thirty?

Do you still need to do IPPT annually??

I have came across some MUT personnel that they started their first ICT in their early 30s and if they don't fulfil the minimum requirement of ICTs to be eilgible to phase into MR, they will continue to do IPPT till 40. Imagine chiong sua at the age at 38/39, it must be damm shag.

It is good to start and ends early.

When I was there in 2005, the situation was rather tense due to the Nguyen Tuong Van drug trafficking case. During the R&R, when we are walking along the streets, we are subjected to jeering and booing by passing cars who buzz at us with hostile horning.

Not sure whether bcos of this case, SAF decided to plan this R&R so boring and low profile that we dun really enjoy much.