The Special Operations Force (SOF) is the primary special forces unit of the Singapore Army responsible for conducting

special operations Special operations (S.O.) are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment". Special operations may include ...

. It is composed of only highly-trained regular servicemen from the

Commandos Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin">40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured A commando is a combatant, or operativ ...

formation. It is also a component of the Special Operations Task Force (SOTF), alongside the Special Warfare Group (SWG) of the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN).

History

On 27 September 1972, a flight engineer aboard

Olympic Airlines Olympic Airlines ( el, Ολυμπιακές Αερογραμμές, ''Olympiakés Aerogrammés'' – OA), formerly named Olympic Airways for at least four decades, was the flag carrier airline of Greece. The airline's head office was located ...

Flight 472 accidentally activated a hijack alarm. The flight, which had 31 passengers and 11 crew members on board, took off from Sydney, Australia at 1030 hours SST and was heading towards Paya Lebar Airport in Singapore. The Australian authorities were not informed of the situation until four hours later. Following a flurry of conflicting reports, Australia's

Civil Aviation Safety Authority The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is the Australian national authority for the regulation of civil aviation. Although distinct from the government, it reports to the Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. CASA is responsibl ...

warned Paya Lebar Airport to be prepared for a possible hijack. Flight 472 landed in Singapore at 1825 hours SST and was immediately surrounded by the police before the Singapore authorities could confirm that it was a false alarm. The incident highlighted the lack of special forces trained and equipped to deal with a hijack or hostage situation in Singapore. This led to the creation of the SOF in 1985 as a unit specially tasked with dealing with such situations.

Operation Thunderbolt (1991)

On 26 March 1991,

Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines ( abbreviation: SIA) is the flag carrier airline of the Republic of Singapore with its hub located at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline is notable for highlighting the Singapore Girl as its central figure in corporat ...

Flight 117 was hijacked in flight by four men, who took all 129 people on board hostage. At

Singapore Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport, commonly known as Changi Airport , is a major civilian international airport that serves Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. As one of the world's busiest airports by international passe ...

, commandos from the SOF stormed the plane, killed the four hijackers and freed the hostages in under a minute. This also marked the SOF's first combat operation.

Other operations

It was reported that some SOF commandos have been deployed to Afghanistan under Operation Blue Ridge alongside regular Commmandos.

References

Bibliography

* {{Singapore Armed Forces 1984 establishments in Singapore Formations of the Singapore Army Special forces of Singapore Counterterrorism in Singapore Counterterrorist organizations