Finding their bearings amid choppy seas
A new Navy series follows a group of aspiring naval officers and engineers as they sail for over a month in their first-ever sea deployment.// Story by Thrina Tham / Photos courtesy of Navy Information Centre
Over 70 midshipmen out at sea for 33 days, on board one Landing Ship Tank (LST). What could happen? A lot.
The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) and So Drama! Entertainment has released a new web series, The Passage 2: A Midshipman's Journey.
The series offers an inside look into what goes on during the Midshipman Sea Training Deployment (MSTD) – a rite of passage for midshipmen to be commissioned as Naval Officers or to graduate as Naval Warfare System Engineers.
Tensions unfold as the young trainees make rookie mistakes that they must quickly learn from. They also share heart-warming moments as they realise how they have to rely on one another for their month-long sail.
The series is a reboot of The Passage: A Midshipman's Journey, released in 2012 by then-cyberpioneerTV and the RSN.
The six-part The Passage 2 was shot on board LST RSS Endurance from July to August this year. It follows midshipmen from the 99th MIDS / 32nd MDEC 1, or Midshipman Course / Military Domain Expert Course 1.
On the way, they called at three ports: Sattahip, Thailand; Dili, Timor-Leste; and Darwin, Australia.
The midshipmen conduct their first live firing out at sea; get tongue twisted at voice commands during their bridge watching keeping duties; and get drilled in various emergency response procedures.
Round-the-clock ship operations also mean that the trainees must battle rough sea state conditions while also dealing with lack of sleep.
Meet some of the midshipmen in the series:
MID Jarrel Tay
"Tall and accident-prone" is how Midshipman (MID) Tay describes himself, admitting that he has upped his safety consciousness from living in the confined conditions of the ship. We see him get scolded for a mistake in Episode 2 but take it in his stride with a positive attitude.
"This (during the MSTD) is a safe space to make mistakes… The scoldings are the worst that it can get. If we go out (and make a mistake during operations)…it won't be a statement, it will be people's lives lost," he said.
MID Johan Fadli
MID Johan starts off excited for the sail, and looks forward to building camaraderie with his batchmates out at sea.
Things like firefighting drills, a land adventure training and even "knocking it down" (Think there's no space on the ship for a mass push up session? See: tank deck) will soon take a toll.
But MID Johan acknowledges that having his batchmates go through everything together with him, has made their team spirit stronger.
MID Jasmine Ong
This petite midship(wo)man is a pint-sized force to be reckoned with. She signed on with the Navy because she wanted to sail, even though she knew that she might be hit with sea sicknesses.
In Episode 1, she coins what we consider a catchphrase-worthy line: "Puke it out and carry on".
ME4(T) Jonathan Tan
In a lesser-known part of the ship, naval engineers work behind-the-scenes in the Machinery Control Room to ensure everything is up and running. They maintain the ship's systems, from its engine to the air-conditioning.
Military Expert 4 (Trainee) Tan is excited to acquire knowledge for his new role, and we are here for it. "There's always something for me to ask, always something for me to learn and so actually the time passes quite enjoyably," he said.
MID Danael Liew
Residing in Canada for the past 10 years, MID Liew came to Singapore just three days before his enlistment. He signed on with the Navy after his Basic Military Training as he wanted to take on the opportunities provided by a military career.
We wonder if he regrets his decision as we watch him get up at 3am for an early watch duty in pitch-black darkness.
MID Benjamin Chik
We meet MID Chik in Episode 3 during the ship crew's first port of call in Thailand. The Full-time National Serviceman did not let the language barrier get to him and was quick to interact with his Thai counterparts in spite of it.
"At the end of the day when I come out of National Service, I want to take away skills that will be applicable to me," he said.
Ready your popcorns as the midshipmen ready their puke bags (just joking!)
In case you missed it, catch the first four episodes of The Passage 2: A Midshipman's Journey on the RSN's YouTube channel. Also look out for the final two episodes that will be released on 23 and 30 Dec!
