With the recent commissioning of the 118/19 Officer Cadet Batch, I am now officially recognised as 2LT Ihit Singh, an Air Warfare Officer (Air Defence Weapons). While my RSAF journey continues in 160 SQN, I take this time now to reminisce the past; my transition from a western world, to a citizen, and now an Officer of the RSAF.

I was born in the United States of America, New Jersey, and moved back to Singapore with my mother during my youth. Growing up, I completed my primary and secondary education locally, but continued my post-secondary education in an international school. I therefore grew up immersed in two different cultures, and tried to embrace both equally.
 

As I went through this past year of both Basic Military Training (BMT) and Officer Cadet School (OCS), I gained an interesting perspective. As I trained under professional men, saw my mates struggling along with me, and embraced the experience of working alongside my comrades, I started to appreciate the idea of National Service (NS). I believe that the safety I experienced during my youth in Singapore is thanks to those who served with pride and honour, and now the safety of Singapore's children of the morrow is up to me. 

Therefore, not wishing to regret my 2 years in NS, I pushed myself in BMT, and tried everything I could to get into OCS. I wanted to prove my worth and step up to undertake the responsibility of Singapore’s defence. When I was accepted into OCS, I was immensely proud yet determined, and I told myself “This is where I give back to the country and her men who protected and served me during my youth.”

As I trained, OCS taught me the unthinkable. I once believed that to hone an individual’s life skills, they would have to live life, not attend classes and training. I believed leadership was something people were born with, a talent only few had. OCS proved me wrong within the first week. Leadership is something everyone has innately. During our training, we were never taught to be leaders, we were taught how to bring out and display that leadership trait found inside all of us.
 

RSAF’s training further exemplified this by giving us direct control over not only men, but also complex and behemoth systems. My training of the Giraffe AMB Radar which towered over most trucks gave me valuable first-hand knowledge of its operation. The difficulty was not found in the theory of the system but rather the employment of our multitasking skills and remaining alert at all times, as a hundred other events are occurring while you are setting it up. This trained us to rack our brain for answers whenever we met with problems, and built our capabilities to handle stress in tight timings while not compromising on safety for my team. 

During any military training, friendships are built upon one’s actions, and safe to say, I had good men around me. The people around me were intelligent, unique, and willing to put up with any problem as long as we faced it together. Like the past, I stuck out immediately amongst my course. My coursemates recognised my lack of knowledge of Singlish and Singaporean culture. However, they found it interesting instead and began to teach me the ways of the street. The instructors accepted me and eased my transition into a Singaporean soldier. Today, I have built a bond with my team and I call 160 SQN my second home. I could not be any more grateful for this opportunity in my lifetime.
 

As I continue my journey in RSAF, I am proud to call Singapore my home. The memories during National Service shall shape my future. As I pursue my dreams in the future, I will always have my bond to Singapore and her people, and will uphold my pride as one of her officers. Singapore is home to many, and I may not have been born here, but Singapore raised me as a citizen, a soldier, an officer, but most above all; a proud Singaporean.

Alert Always. For Singapore.