Oral Reply by Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing on Recognising the Contributions of SAF Personnel Involved in Recent Repatriation Efforts on 7 Apr 2026

Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Minister for Defence whether the Ministry would consider (i) formally recognising the contributions of SAF personnel involved in recent repatriation flights from the Middle East and (ii) developing exhibitions or public education initiatives to highlight the choices and personal courage required to organise such repatriation efforts from active warzones.

Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Minister for Defence, Mr Chan Chun Sing:

The SAF has a framework to recognise all our units and personnel who have participated in operations. We will similarly do so for the recent mission undertaken by the SAF in service of our nation.

Within the bounds of operational security, the SAF will profile the mission planning, execution and the background training that enabled the SAF to execute this mission. All missions involve risks. All missions are enabled by the consistent investment in training and equipping over the years.

We thank Singaporeans for their support for our SAF. Our SAF remains ready to execute our missions in service of our country and people.

This mission was made possible by the collective efforts of many across the SAF and other agencies, including those beyond MINDEF. Besides the air crew who mounted the flights, there was also a team of headquarters planners, intelligence analysts and policy staff, some of whom are non-uniform officers who worked at short notice to develop a safe flight plan, obtain diplomatic clearances and formulate various contingency scenarios and responses.

We had a military medical team deployed to ensure the safety and well-being of those on board, commercial personnel from our defence partners, including ST Engineering Defence Aviation Services and ST Airport Services deployed alongside our uniformed engineers to support aircraft maintenance and cargo management.

Locally, our Full-time National Servicemen ensured that the aircraft was prepared and equipped in a timely manner for the two flights.