The Republic of Singapore Air Force's (RSAF) next-generation A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft is now fully operational and can carry out missions such as transporting servicemen across large distances and extending the range of fighter jets.

Other than refuelling the RSAF's F-16 and F-15SG fighters in midair, it can also refuel another MRTT - enabling the refuelled aircraft to travel farther or stay in the air longer on a single flight.

The MRTT is also now ready for aeromedical operations, including mass casualty evacuations or the transfer of patients with infectious diseases such as Ebola.

With the flexibility to be configured for different operations, the MRTT is meant to improve the Singapore Armed Forces' ability to take part in international humanitarian aid and disaster relief missions or peace support operations.

Yesterday, a ceremony to mark the MRTT attaining full operational capability status was held at Changi Air Base (East), where the 112 Squadron, which operates the MRTTs, is based.

At the ceremony, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said that the MRTT marks another step up in efforts to extend the range of the RSAF's planes.

He said the journey in midair refuelling started more than 30 years ago, and had a boost about 20 years ago with the KC-135R Stratotanker.

The MRTT, whose acquisition was announced in 2014 and was delivered to the RSAF from 2018, replaces the KC-135R, which retired in 2019 after two decades of service with the RSAF.

"The MRTT's better endurance and its ability to do tanker-to-tanker refuelling - which the KC-135 could not - extends its operating footprint, and we're now able to reach all our overseas detachments without layovers," Dr Ng said.

"For our fighter aircraft, the MRTT provides the capacity to reach faraway parts of the globe, and correspondingly, the assurance that we would be able to recover our assets from anywhere in the world when the situation warrants it. That's a real source of assurance."

Dr Ng noted that compared with the KC-135R, the MRTT can hold 20 per cent more fuel, has twice the cargo capacity and can carry more than five times the number of passengers.

The Ministry of Defence said yesterday that the RSAF's MRTT crew has undergone extensive training to operate and maintain the platform, and has validated the capabilities of the aircraft in local and overseas exercises and missions.

The MRTT demonstrated its capability to receive fuel from another MRTT last Friday. Reporters in the receiving aircraft observed the midair manoeuvre in the South China Sea airspace.

Reporters were also shown various set-ups in the MRTT to handle aeromedical evacuations, from patients who need light to moderate care to those who are in need of intensive care or have infectious diseases.

The commanding officer of 112 Squadron, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Victor Ong, 38, said the next-generation tanker aircraft has two main roles for Mindef and the Singapore Armed Forces - air-to-air refuelling and transporting passengers and cargo over large distances.

"So if you put those two things together, it means that 112 Squadron is operating a strategic enabler for Mindef/SAF," he said.

The MRTT is operated by a crew of three - a pilot, a co-pilot, and an air-refuelling operator. The RSAF's MRTT is the first in the world to operate with a crew of three instead of four - the result of efforts between the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and the RSAF.

Ms Ang Wei Qin, 31, a principal engineer with DSTA, said the team had looked at the operational processes and the individual workloads of the original four crew members, and identified specific tasks that could be reassigned from the four crew members to just three.

First Sergeant Lim Pei Zhen, 25, the first woman air-refuelling operator in the RSAF, was previously a boom operator on the KC-135R, but now operates on the MRTT.

To her, the MRTT attaining full operational capability means the squadron has proven itself capable enough to replace the KC-135R and is keeping up with technology, such as through the use of an electronic flight bag, a device that displays aviation data.