"It was a great privilege to have represented Singapore and the RSAF well during the course. This award is recognition that our tireless pursuit of professionalism and excellence allow us to stand tall amongst the best in spite of Singapore's small physical size and the RSAF’s relative youth."

Congratulations to MAJ Mark Lim from the Air Warfare Centre for achieving Top Graduate honours from the United States Naval Test Pilot School (USNTPS) Fixed Wing Engineering Test Pilot Course!

Known as the Commander Willie McCool Outstanding Student Award, this award is presented to the top performing student in each graduating class in recognition of his or her academics, flight performance, and technical report writing.

Over 11 months, the course prepared students to meet the requirements of aviation developmental and operational test and evaluation, in addition to other research, development test and evaluation activities across U.S. military services, government agencies and international partners. MAJ Mark's cohort comprised 32 other pilots, engineers and naval flying officers from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Finland and Italy.

When asked about contributors to his success, MAJ Mark said, "Humility and a willingness to learn from the vast resources of experience and perspectives from the instructors and my classmates were key factors to achieving my best. The leadership grooming opportunities provided by the SAF, as well as the technical flying foundation provided by the dedication and professionalism of the RSAF instructor corps, also put me in good stead to work well with my classmates to achieve team objectives."

MAJ Mark also credited the strong support from his family as a key factor to his success, "The tireless support and love from my wife and children who uprooted their lives in Singapore to accompany me during the course allowed me to focus on realising my potential."

Congratulations again for flying our flag high!