First Line of Defence

Established in 2013, the Army Intelligence Formation plays a vital role in the collection and analysis of real-time information, converting them into accurate, timely and relevant Intelligence.

Accompanied by the deployment of tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and other specialised Intelligence assets, as well as superior surveillance and analytical skills, Army Intelligence supports the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in a wide range of operations that helps to ensure national security in times of peace and provides Our Army with a decisive edge in times of war.

On 12 July, Army Intelligence celebrated their first 5-year milestone with a parade at Pasir Laba Camp. There, the formation also witnessed the Trooping of its Regimental Colours. Conferred to the formation at SAF Day 2018, the Colours symbolises the spirit of the regiment and represents the pride, honour, and loyalty of its men.

Army Intelligence Over The Years

The 5-year mark for the Army Intelligence Formation was a special milestone and a proud moment for the Army Intelligence tribe. Army Intelligence may be a young formation but is certainly one with a long and proud heritage, tracing its roots all the way back to the formative years of the SAF.

It started with the formation of the Department of Military Intelligence (DMI) in the old MINDEF at Pers Node, in 1966. “When I first went into the Intelligence Formation, I went in as an assistant to the Head of DMI, when the General Staff was formed. The DMI was headed by Assistant Chief of General Staff (ACGS) (Intelligence). In our time, most of our efforts and focus was on training Intelligence Officers for the units, the S2 and so on,” said COL (RET) How See Shing, then 2nd ACGS (Intelligence), when looking back at the formative years of the Intelligence Formation.

To build up their professional competencies, the School of Military Intelligence (SMI) was formed in 1969, at Pasir Laba Camp. “When I first joined Army Intelligence, there wasn't anything called Army Intelligence, all we had was the SMI. I think the training I received back then, the Basic Intelligence Officers Course and the Advanced Intelligence Officers Course, together with the experiences I have gone through as an Intelligence Officer, were nothing short of fantastic”, said COL (RET) Arthur Kuan, 1st Chief Army Intelligence Officer, when sharing on the training and experiences he had while in the formation.

In 1975, G2 MINDEF was established and eventually became G2 Army. “Back then when we came into Army Intelligence, which was G2 Army, it was highly specialised and we focused more on collection and analysis. The kind of information we received at that time was a little more operational and strategic rather than tactical. So towards the part where we actually transited into the formation of Army Intelligence Headquarters (HQ), we were able to focus more on the requirements on the ground rather than ‘I’m giving you what I think you’ll need’”, said MWO (RET) Richard Quek, 1st Formation Sergeant Major, when asked about the G2 Army’s capabilities and the adjustments they had to make when forming the Army Intelligence HQ.

In 2005, the Combat Intelligence Group (CIG) was born from the restructuring of the Combat Intelligence department in G2 Army. COL (RET) Francis Yee, 1st Commander of CIG/SMI-Institute, described some of the many challenges he faced during the merging of CIG and SMI-Institute. “Back then, I was actually the first Commander of CIG/SMI-Institute. It was a very challenging period. We had to raise, train and sustain the Army Intelligence. We had to bring up the training for the Joint Intelligence, as well as to manage some operational Military Intelligence (MI) battalions there.” When tasked to amalgamate CIG and SMI-Institute, COL (RET) Yee and his team succeeded though what many thought was impossible, and he continued to share how privileged he was to be a part of it.

Finally, in 2013, HQ Army Intelligence was officially inaugurated as a Senior Specialist Staff Officer (SSSO) HQ, spearheading the Raise, Train and Sustain function of Army Intelligence capabilities and to support Army operations from peace to war.

The SAF Army Intelligence Formation has been built on the decades of foundation forged by the pioneers of Army Intelligence. They overcame challenges, uncertainties and also provided leadership and direction for the present soldiers to build the formation upon. We thank the past and present Army Intelligence personnel for their unwavering support to the defence of Singapore!

FIRST LINE OF DEFENCE!

Written by: REC Gershwin Lim

Photos by: LCP Sean Seah