NDP 2024: 40 assets to mark 40 years of Total Defence
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SINGAPORE – To mark 40 years of Total Defence, National Day Parade 2024 will bring the Dynamic Defence Display – with 40 assets and more than 400 participants – to the Padang for the first time.
Performances will also take place in the waters of Marina Bay to extend the experience to more spectators at this year’s parade, which celebrates Singapore’s 59th year of independence.
The Total Defence 40 (TD40) Dynamic Defence Display segment will simulate scenarios of threats and disruptions in the air, on land and at sea, and in digital and civil domains.
The Singapore Army, Republic of Singapore Navy, Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF), Digital and Intelligence Service, Singapore Police Force and Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) will demonstrate how these threats and disruptions are dealt with.
Major Eugene Ng, the TD40 Dynamic Defence Display committee chairman, said the display, titled Together, We Keep Singapore Strong, will demonstrate “our combined ability to defend Singapore against threats and challenges”.
“It also seeks to educate and inspire our fellow Singaporeans on how we can all play our part to keep Singapore strong,” he said at a media event on June 21 at the National Gallery Singapore.
The display used to be held at the Marina Bay floating platform, with the last in 2022, before the parade returned to the Padang in 2023.
For the first time, national water agency PUB will be part of the display to show how temporary water supply will be provided during disruptions.
Third Warrant Officer Jonathan Mark Garnell, who will drive a light strike vehicle – a fast attack vehicle used by the army – during the display, said he has been planning the manoeuvres for his one-minute performance since April.
In the display, four such vehicles will drive in a criss-cross formation and fire their machine guns in response to a simulated land attack.
“At first, we had a bit of issue with synchronising. If one speeds up, the other vehicles may speed up as well, and we may collide,” said the 38-year-old, adding that coordination was refined after several rehearsals.
First Sergeant Kumaren Thanabal will drive the RSAF’s surface-to-air Python-5 and Derby (Spyder) system, an advanced weapon system that has infra-red and radar guided missiles.
Third Warrant Officer Jonathan Mark Garnell (left) and First Sergeant Kumaren Thanabal at the Padang on June 21.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
In the performance, the Spyder systems will respond to an air attack and simulate deploying missiles using pyrotechnics.
“I need to be familiar with deploying the system. It has to be like muscle memory,” said the 25-year-old, who started learning to operate the system 2½ years ago.
In the Marina Bay area, spectators can watch the Police Coast Guard perform a high-speed interception, and naval divers conduct simulated defusing of a bomb.
Participants from the Total Defence 40 Dynamic Defence Display at Padang on June 21.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
The public can also catch the AH-64 Apache attack helicopters as they fly over Marina Bay towards the Padang.
The parade and ceremony segment will see more than 2,100 participants in 35 marching contingents, including 24 from the youth, social and economic groups.
The contingents will, for the first time, march onto and through the spectator stands as part of creating an immersive 360-degree experience.
Lieutenant-Colonel Roger Cheong, 44, said he was honoured to take on the role of parade commander and has been working to motivate the participants by engaging them individually.
Master Warrant Officer Mohamed Ayub Said Abdul Kader (left) and Lieutenant Colonel Roger Cheong at the NDP media event at the Padang on June 21.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
“When I see people from all walks of life coming together... it motivates me to lead them in an important event like NDP,” he said.
Four assets will be shown to the public for the first time at the NDP – the army’s latest weapon, the light machine gun; the SCDF’s next-generation fire engine called the electric pump ladder; PUB’s water wagon; and the Singapore Red Cross’ transporter vehicle.
The light machine gun, with its improved ergonomics, allows soldiers to operate more effectively in different combat situations, while the electric pump ladder has a fully digitalised platform that allows responders to manage the engine’s functions on a tablet.
The water wagon has a 1,000-litre tank, and the transporter vehicle is used to ferry volunteers and essential logistics in the event of an emergency.
