Clarence Tan Kim Peng is a Singaporean former lieutenant-colonel best known for contributing to the creation of the Commandos formation of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in its infancy and early years.

Career

Tan began his military career as a volunteer in the Singapore Military Force (now the Singapore Armed Forces) in 1960. He was commissioned as a

Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

after completing the Officer Cadet Course in the Federation Military College in Malaysia, after which he served as a platoon commander in the Singapore Infantry Regiment (SIR)'s 1st Battalion. During the Konfrontasi (1963–1966), Tan was posted to various units, including the Malaysian Special Operations Force, and performed frontline duties in Sabah and Taiping in Malaysia. In June 1967, Tan and Chan Seck Sung attended the ranger and airborne courses conducted by the US Army in

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

, United States. He was promoted to the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

during this period of time. In 1967, Tan was tasked with recruiting eligible candidates for the Singapore Armed Forces Regular Battalion, the precursor of the

1st Commando Battalion First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

. He was promoted to

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in April 1969 and was appointed as the

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

(CO) of the SIR's 4th Battalion a year later. He was reassigned to be the CO of the Singapore Armed Forces Regular Battalion again in January 1971 and remained in this position until the unit was renamed "1st Commando Battalion" in June 1978. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel during this period of time. Later, Tan was transferred from the 1st Commando Battalion to the 5th Singapore Infantry Brigade, but he returned to serve as the Commandant of the newly established Singapore Armed Forces Commando Formation in 1981. He held this appointment until 1988 and served as a

defence attaché Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

in Australia before retiring in 1992.

Bibliography

References

* ''For Honour and Glory: A Celebration of Commando History (1969–1994)''. * Interview
Legit Old: Clarence Tan -- S’pore’s first-ever Commando officer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tan, Clarence Kim Peng Living people Singaporean people of Chinese descent Singaporean military leaders 1941 births