Australian Chief of Air Force Receives Prestigious Military Award

The Chief of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Air Marshal (AM) Gavin Davies, was conferred Singapore's prestigious military award, the Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) [or Meritorious Service Medal (Military)], by President Tony Tan Keng Yam. Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen presented the award to AM Davies at an investiture held at the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) this afternoon.

AM Davies was conferred the award for his significant contributions in forging closer ties between the RAAF and the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF). He has promoted greater cooperation through joint exercises, including Exercise Pitch Black and Exercise Bersama Lima, as well as joint operational deployments, such as those in support of multinational counter-ISIS efforts in the Middle East. Such cooperation has yielded professional benefits and deepened people-to-people ties between the two air forces. AM Davies also contributed significantly to the operational readiness of the RSAF through his strong support for the RSAF's training in Australia, such as basic flying training in Pearce, helicopter training in Oakey, and  fighter training in Amberley, Darwin, Rockhampton, Tindal and Williamtown.

The Singapore Armed Forces and the Australian Defence Force have a long history of military cooperation in the form of bilateral and multilateral training exercises, operational cooperation, visits, professional exchanges, and the cross-attendance of courses. Both armed forces also interact multilaterally under the ambit of the Five Power Defence Arrangements and the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus. Such military cooperation will be further strengthened under the Singapore-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership adopted in June 2015 by the Prime Ministers of Singapore and Australia.

On receiving the award, AM Davies said, "I am honoured to accept this significant award. Australia and Singapore are close and long-standing partners and over many years, we have worked together on a range of activities to nurture and advance our relationship. On behalf of the entire RAAF, I will continue to strive to enhance our relationship, wherever we work together - on exercise, in other training environments and internationally. Australia and Singapore enjoy a robust and close relationship. Looking to the future, I am confident that this will continue."

AM Davies, who is in Singapore from 30 October to 1 Nov 2016, called on Dr Ng, Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant-General Perry Lim, and Chief of Air Force Major-General Mervyn Tan prior to the investiture. He also inspected a Guard of Honour contingent at MINDEF, and visited the Air Force Training Command earlier today