05 December 2019

Singapore commissions Special Operations Command Centre

by Kelvin Wong

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) has commissioned the Special Operations Command Centre (SOCC) as part of wide-ranging efforts to secure the country against the growing threat of transnational terrorism, the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) announced on 4 December.

Based at Hendon Camp in the eastern part of Singapore, the SOCC is a centralised command centre that will boost connectivity to homeland security and civil defence agencies, enhancing the SAF Special Operations Task Force’s (SOTF’s) ability to respond to terrorist activity across the island.

Singapore army commandos advance to a target during an urban operations training exercise. Singapore has commissioned a new command centre to enhance the military’s ability to respond to terror attacks. (Janes/Kelvin Wong)

According to MINDEF, the SOCC is a joint development between the SAF and the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) and is equipped with an organic C4I system to make sense of acquired data from multiple SAF and government-owned sensors and intelligence sources, including last-mile surveillance assets such as unmanned aerial systems (UASs) to generate a synchronised picture of the situation.

This can be shared with deployed SOTF operators to boost their situational awareness and mission effectiveness.

MINDEF also stated that the SOCC will exploit data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) technology to support the collection and analysis of mission critical information, as well as a decision support capability to SOTF planners to expedite their planning and execution processes. It will also facilitate access and sharing of information between SOTF and other government agencies to boost planning and co-ordination during joint operations.

“The inauguration of the SOTF’s [SOCC] represents an important step in the Commandos’ response to present day security threats,” said Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen during the Commando formation’s 50th anniversary parade on the same day.

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