Social distancing? What's that?
One of the last batches of Singapore Army AMX-13 SM1 trainees gather in front of their French-built light tanks at Sungei Gedong Camp in early November 2006. This was the day then Minister for Defence, Teo Chee Hean, announced that the army had purchased Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks. The German-made Leopards were acquired second-hand from the Bundeswehr (German armed forces).
At the time, the APFSDS-T round (Project Spider) was still classified. I was allowed to write about it 10 years later (!) for one of the books that marked the 50th anniversary of Singapore's Defence Technology Community. I wrote two chapters (development of armoured fighting vehicles and development of small arms) for the book on Land System.
The young SM1 tank crews, then serving their full-time National Service, would have completed their NS obligations by now. I wonder what they're up to now.