Passage Exercise with the Royal Malaysian Navy

Our Formidable-class frigate RSS Intrepid and Victory-class missile corvette RSS Vigilance met up with our friend Kasturi-class KD Lekir from the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) along the Strait of Malacca today for a passage exercise (PASSEX). PASSEXes offer navies valuable opportunity to exercise together out at sea so as to enhance interoperability.

Despite not being able to meet face-to-face in the ongoing pandemic, the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) leverages the strong understanding that had been built between the two navies to plan and execute this exercise. 

The exercise saw the ships conducting a series of warfare-oriented exercises together. A key serial was the Surface Action Group Exercise (SAGEX), where the ships tracked and monitored critical contacts of interest transiting through the area of operations. The ships also executed live gunnery firing on a killer-tomato target. 

Communication System Operators preparing flags as part of an encoded message during a communication exercise. To build interoperability, the ships conducted communication and manoeuvring exercises during the PASSEX.

RSS Intrepid's Weapon Control Systems Supervisor ME2 Lee Jun Rong (left) scrutinising the accuracy of each salvo during the live gunnery firing.

"A-Gun shot out!" Bravo Zulu to the team on board RSS Vigilance for successfully destroying the killer-tomato target!

“ I would like to thank everyone for putting in the hard work to make this RSN-RMN PASSEX successful. While we were unable to hold Exercise MALAPURA (a bilateral exercise between the RSN and RMN) this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, over this 12-hour passage exercise, we were able to complete the surface tracking exercise, a firing, and a communication exercise effectively as a task group. ”

- Commanding Officer RSS Vigilance MAJ Sing Geok Wei, in her farewell speech (conducted via radio out at sea) following the successful completion of the PASSEX

We wish our RMN friends on board KD Lekir (left) fair winds and following seas – and we hope to exercise together again in the future.

(Photographs courtesy of ME4 Liong Chun Hoong from RSS Intrepid, CPT Anna Saradha from RSS Vigilance, and ME3 Andy Lin from 8th Flotilla)