Singapore To Purchase 2 Submarines, Maritime Patrol Aircraft And More

March 03,2025

By:ThemeSpiral.com

SINGAPORE will purchase another two submarines to supplement its current fleet of four Invincible-class submarines in the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN). Aside from that, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) will also be making procurements of new materiel in line with the SAF 2040 blueprint.

The statement was made by the republic’s defence minister Ng Eng Hen in his announcement of the defence ministry’s (MINDEF) spending plans in parliament today. He said that although the first two Invincible-class submarines custom-ordered from thyssenkrupp Marine Systems were fully operationalised last September, the other pair have yet to attain full operational capabilities with all four submarines slated to be operational by 2028.

“But four submarines are not optimal for a fleet. Our submarines are subjected to more rigorous and frequent maintenance cycles with stringent checks; as you can imagine, they need to operate under intense pressure, literally,” he added. “Operational time is conversely reduced relatively. This is why most navies that operate submarines have more than four – Australia, Indonesia, Vietnam – to name a few of our close neighbours. Having proven that the Invincible-class submarines can perform to expectations in tropical waters, the SAF plans to procure two more submarines, to make up a total of six, as the steady state for our submarine fleet.”

The RSN will also be launching its first multi-role combat vessel (MRCV) later this year, with a total of six on order to replace the service’s ageing Victory-class missile corvettes that have sailed for over three decades. Being larger than the corvettes, the MRCVs have a greater operational range of up to three times more. “The MRCV is actually not one ship but a mothership with unmanned platforms. Together with its suite of advanced sensors and combat systems, she will strengthen the navy’s ability to safeguard our maritime interests,” Ng said.

In safeguarding Singaporean airspace, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) will be looking into replacing its Fokker-50 maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), with the top two candidates being Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon and Airbus’ C295. Minister Ng also confirmed the RSAF’s acquisition of 8 additional Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II fighters on top of the initial dozen F-35Bs. With that, the RSAF established fighter training detachments for F-35 and F-16 pilots at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in the United States.

Furthermore, the Singapore Army will also be acquiring a brand new infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) dubbed the Titan, a wheeled IFV armed with a 30mm remote controlled weapons station (RCWS). On top of that, the Titan will feature cutting edge counter-unmanned aerial system (UAS) solutions. The minister further added that the Army’s M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) in service since 2010 will be upgraded to launch more potent rockets, citing the platforms efficacy throughout the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Overall, MINDEF’s expenditure has been projected to be around US$17.3 billion, recording a 12.4% hike from the previous year. “It’s sizeable, but it reflects the catch-up of projects deferred or disrupted due to COVID-19. We are still catching up, including those impacted by supply chain disruptions in recent years,” the minister said.-shp/adj/dl (Pix:SG MINDEF)

Source:

https://adj.com.my/2025/03/03/singapore-to-purchase-2-submarines-maritime-patrol-aircraft-and-more/