All recruits at BMTC will learn basic drone skills

Unmanned tech on the rise and SAF has to know how to use and counter it: Minister

- Ng Wei Kai

All recruits trained at the Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC) on Pulau Tekong will learn to use drone technology and how to counter it, said Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing on Aug 4.

Speaking to the media after his first visit to BMTC since taking over the defence portfolio in May, Mr Chan said unmanned technology is proliferating and the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) needs to know how to use it and fight against it.

Given such developments, soldiers must now be trained to expand their situational awareness, he said.

Drone training is not just about tactical or technical skills, he added.

"It's also a larger exercise to train (soldiers) in their three-dimensional spatial awareness because when they fight the battle, how they apply their weapon systems, they have to think three-dimensional, and not just two dimensions."

The first group of over 3,000 soldiers to learn basic drone skills during basic military training (BMT) enlisted in July, and SAF is currently developing doctrine on how to evade drones.

SAF has always used technology to complement its fighting capabilities, Mr Chan said.

Speaking to the media after watching recruits operate a roughly palm-size drone outfield, he said that in the past, one soldier could be armed with just a rifle.