The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is conducting Exercise Rover from 22 to 31 May 2025 at a part of the Sembawang Country Club (SCC) golf course. Exercise Rover is an outfield helicopter deployment exercise organised by the RSAF’s Air Power Generation Command (APGC) – one of the six Commands under the RSAF – and is responsible for maintaining and preparing RSAF aircraft for daily missions as well as ensuring that the RSAF air bases are operationally ready.

During the exercise, an outfield location was converted into a temporary helicopter deployment area, which is capable of supporting a range of helicopter missions, such as air defence and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. The exercise involved about 600 RSAF personnel of which 230 are Operationally Ready National Servicemen. As part of the exercise, the RSAF’s AH-64D Apache Longbow, H225M Medium Lift, and CH-47 Heavy Lift Helicopters were activated to respond swiftly to various scenarios.

The Air Power Generation (APG) squadrons involved worked collectively with each other as well as with the helicopter squadrons to successfully conduct air operations from an outfield environment to achieve mission success. The APG squadrons participating in this exercise are as follows:

a.     The Air Base Civil Engineering Squadron, 506 Squadron, is responsible for converting the outfield location into helicopter landing points, and supporting essential tasks such as aircraft refuelling, reloading of stores and supplies for helicopter operations. The Squadron adopts innovative technologies to improve operational efficiency, such as:

i.     Using the Smart Dynamic Cone Penetrometer to measure the soil hardness and to identify viable landing zones in unprepared locations.

ii.     Deploying Mobi Mats and visual landing aids to rapidly establish secure and stable landing surfaces in outfield environment.

b.     The Force Protection Squadron, 606 Squadron, is responsible for the overall security of the air base. For this exercise, 606 squadron provides security for the outfield locations converted into a temporary helicopter landing area to ensure uninterrupted launch and recovery operations. The force protection troopers also trialled Smart Airbase technologies, such as the Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) to augment manned operations and perform security operations more effectively.

c.     The Airbase Sustainment Squadron, 706 Squadron, is responsible for the provision of meals, water, electrical power, vehicles and general equipment stores for outfield operations. In addition, the squadron’s medical team is able to respond swiftly and effectively, provide timely triage, treatment, and evacuation for any medical contingencies.

d.     The Air Base Control Squadron, 206 Squadron, is responsible for providing air traffic control for the helicopters in order to land and take off safely from the temporary helicopter operations area.

e.     The Air Engineering and Logistics Squadrons, 806 and 816 Squadrons, are responsible for ensuring the readiness and maintenance of the aircraft, and for sustaining aircraft operations safely in day and night environment. A Spydercrane – a compact and mobile crane system – was deployed outfield to support heavy lifting maintenance works.