Christened the RSS Intrepid, RSS Steadfast and RSS Tenacious, the grey, 114m-long warships gleamed in the morning sunshine as officers and men lined the decks in their formal whites.

Two more stealth frigates, the Republic of Singapore Navy's largest strike vessels, will be ready next year.

They, like the three commissioned yesterday, will be made by Singapore Technologies Marine.

The RSS Formidable is the only one among the six to have been made in France.

Speaking at the commissioning ceremony, Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean said the weapons and sensors on these frigates will provide the navy with 'a quantum leap in warfare capabilities', crucial for defending the world's busiest port.

These ships will also enable the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) units to work more closely because they come kitted with advanced communications equipment that can obtain and share combat data with other units.

Mr Teo noted that more than 10 combat systems from six countries, plus locally developed equipment, had to be installed and made to work in sync.

Member of Parliament Indranee Rajah, who chairs the Government Parliamentary Committee for Defence and Foreign Affairs, said: 'The SAF's three services - the army, navy and air force - must be able to fight as a unified whole. In order to do that, you have to have upgraded technology. These stealth frigates allow the navy to do just that.'

DAVID BOEY