| Close to 70 National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets from various secondary schools gathered at Seletar East Camp on 17 Nov to experience life as an SAF combat engineer.
During the four-day camp organised by the 35th Battalion Singapore Combat Engineers (35 SCE), the cadets were given the rare opportunity of trying out state-of-the-art equipment used by the combat engineers.
From using mine-detecting instruments, wearing chemical defence suits, to navigating in a fast moving craft, the cadets enjoyed themselves tremendously.
"It is extremely cool to experiment and play with all the new gadgets here," exclaimed Corporal (NCC) Ong Bo Han from Pei Hwa Secondary School. " I especially liked the Co-CBT (Co-operative Computer Based Training) element where I got to experience what it feels like to be a M3G (Military Float Bridge/Raft) driver!"
Echoed Staff Sergeant (NCC) Oh Ming Xuan from Victoria School: "I am amazed by the diverse responsibilities undertaken by combat engineers. It is a complete eye-opener for me. I now have a better understanding of what our National Servicemen from the Combat Engineers unit actually practise and do everyday to safeguard our nation."
To test the proficiency of the engineering skills that they had acquired over the past days, an Engineer Skills Challenge was organised.
The core values of professionalism, creativity and fighting spirit were all incorporated into the planning of the various stations, so cadets had to exhibit these values in order to complete the tasks set out for them.
"The stations were challenging, but no doubt achievable as long as we worked together as a team. Completing the stations at the end of it just brought an indescribable sense of satisfaction and fulfilment," said SSG (NCC) Ian Tan from Nan Chiau High, who was nominated as Best Cadet for the camp.
"This Engineer Skills Challenge was very well-planned. Not only did it encapsulate all that we were taught over the days, we were also given the chance to really practise and apply what we have learnt," he added.
Throughout the duration of the camp, the cadets were also totally immersed in life as a Full-Time National Serviceman. They stayed in bunks, ate food prepared at the cook house and even tried out the combat rations specially designed for outfield exercises and operations.
As a result, they all gained a greater awareness of what to expect when their time to serve the nation comes.
For their last night together, the cadets gathered around a campfire for a night of song and dance. Performing skits, sharing jokes and basking in their new-found friendships, smiles and laughter could be seen and heard everywhere.
"The campfire is the best way to cap off all the wonderful times we had in this camp. I will never forget the friends that I have made here. Overall, I enjoyed myself thoroughly and had an amazing time. This camp is just too short!" remarked Third Sergeant (NCC) Terence Lim from Bukit Panjang Government High.
As the organising committee saw how happy and appreciative the cadets were, they were glad that their weeks of preparation for the Engineers-NCC Camp had paid off.
"I feel a deep sense of fulfilment," commented Private Shem Leong, who was platoon in-charge of this camp.
He added: "It is extremely heart-warming to see everyone in the company working together to organise such a successful camp for the NCC cadets."
I'm sure it's a fun and eye opening experience for the NCC cadets. But it's lots of hard work and sai kang for people in my battalion. Our guys had to carry and launch the assault boat for them. And also wash and maintain the boats after they are done playing with it. And it took us weeks to plan the event covering safety and stuff.
"It is extremely cool to experiment and play with all the new gadgets here" - Fun to play but not fun to maintain! LOL! "Overall, I enjoyed myself thoroughly and had an amazing time." and "they all gained a greater awareness of what to expect when their time to serve the nation comes" - I'm sure they would be totally abhorred and wouldn't want to remember the 'fun' they had if they were NSFs serving here. LOL. My first encounter with the assault boat wasn't that 'fun' and 'amazing'. I could still remember how siong it is to run around with the boats and being 'semula-ed' to launch and de-launch the boats within the time limit. Worst still, we were made to do push-ups in the sandy shoreline and made to scoop water using our helmet and pour over ourselves. It's sure fun to drive the boats but it ain't fun to have only 3 hours of sleep everyday and the drive boat for the rest of the day. LOL!
But again, come to think of it, it's quite an experience to be tekan-ed like that. hahaha. Good memories.
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