Open House

The Republic of Singapore Navy had their open house today at Changi Naval Base.  The naval base is on the eastern side of the island just past the airport.  As with most military bases, there is typically restricted access so it was a great opportunity to get on base and explore something I wouldn't normally get to see.

Changi Naval Base is huge.  It has some new buildings to house both operations and soldiers.  It also has quite a large berthing space for their ships as well as visiting ships.  They had a nice selection on display including frigates, missile corvettes, patrol vessels, submarines, landing ship tank, and mine countermeasure vessels.

They offered a number of rides...they called them cruises... on the various ships.  You had to put your name into a lottery and then they would text you if you won.  It seemed like a nice way to manage the process and give everybody a fair shot.  They also provided guided tours on a number of the ships but the lines were pretty long and it was Singapore hot so we opted not to go on any tours.

It was interesting to notice that they didn't have the large scale ships that we are used to seeing in the US Navy.  There were no aircraft carriers and the few battleships they had weren't nearly the size that I have seen in the US.

I also found out, by asking a very nice sailor, that this is the flag of the Republic of Singapore Navy:

As with most places in Singapore, you can't wander around without running into some fun signs.

Would hate to be around when this occurred.  However, it is quite nice that they give you the warning.

Lastly, and probably the most important sign I've seen in awhile...

Do not...I repeat...do not under any circumstance drive Herbie off of the dock!