Shoalwater Bay: The Wild Aussie Coast Where The SAF Trains Hard And Fights Smart

This story is part of our series uncovering the Singapore Armed Forces’ overseas exercises, where our defenders train far from home to keep us safe in the Lion City.

To most Singaporeans, “Queensland, Australia” probably brings to mind the Gold Coast, the Great Barrier Reef, and the good life under endless blue skies.

But tucked away in this vast coastal wilderness is a training ground that’s become mission-critical for the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF): Shoalwater Bay Training Area (SWBTA) is where the SAF gets to stretch its legs – big time! – and push itself way beyond what’s possible on home turf.

Every year, SAF personnel descend on this rugged expanse for Exercise Wallaby – our largest unilateral overseas drill – and Exercise Trident, our flagship bilateral operation with the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

It’s not just about flexing military muscle; it’s about forging teamwork, sharpening tactics and testing new tech like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and tactical 5G networks.

Let’s dive in.

Camp Tilpal is the newest in the expanded Shoalwater Bay Training Area. | IMAGE: FACEBOOK/OURSINGAPOREARMY

Shoalwater Bay Training Area (SWBTA) 101

SWBTA enables the SAF to conduct large-scale and complex training exercises on realistic terrain beyond what Singapore’s training areas permit.

After years of expansion and development, SWBTA is now five times the size of Singapore, and incorporates new state-of-the-art facilities that allow the SAF to hone its operational capabilities and endurance across more complex mission profiles.

Some of the advanced training facilities available at SWBTA include:

• Combined arms air-land ranges, which enable large-scale integrated live-firing exercises that accommodate up to a battalion, supported by a wider range of assets like rocket artillery and fighter jets
• Urban operations live-firing facilities, consisting of 33 urbanised buildings that support up to battalion-level training, enabling realistic urban live-firing exercises on a scale that cannot be performed in Singapore

How Exercise Wallaby levels up our troops

Since 1990, the SAF has been conducting Exercise Wallaby (XWB) annually in SWBTA. XWB is the SAF's largest overseas unilateral exercise involving air, land and sea components, and has grown in scope and scale with realistic and challenging training scenarios over the years.

The most recent edition of XWB in 2024 took place over 9 weeks from 8 September to 3 November 2024, with the exercise being conducted across three training frames.

6,200 SAF personnel and approximately 490 platforms from the Singapore Army, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF), and the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS) were involved in XWB 2024.

The RSAF's SPYDER system was deployed at XWB for the first time in 2024. | IMAGE: FACEBOOK/THERSAF

XWB 2024 saw Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV) from the 41st Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (41 SAR) participating in live-firing exercises alongside the Leopard 2SG Main Battle Tanks from the 48th Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (48 SAR) for the first time.

It was also the first XWB with participation from DIS since its establishment in 2022, and the first deployment of the SPYDER (Surface-to-air PYthon-5 and DERby) system operated by the RSAF’s Divisional Air Defence Group (DAG) at XWB, providing enhanced air defence coverage for the Singapore Army’s area of operations during the exercise.

Exercise Trident: Training shoulder-to-shoulder with Australia

Exercise Wallaby isn’t the only thing happening at SWBTA. In 2013, Singapore and Australia conducted the first edition of Exercise Trident (XTD), involving all three services from both militaries.

The annual XTD has since become the SAF and ADF’s flagship bilateral exercise, aimed at strengthening cooperation and interoperability between the armed forces of both nations.

The latest edition of XTD in 2024 took place from 6 to 15 November 2024 and involved over 1,900 personnel from the Singapore Army, the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) and the ADF.

The highlight? A large-scale battalion-level amphibious operation that involved ship-to-shore projections of troops and vehicles and sea resupply operations, culminating in an urban operation executed by troops from the SAF and ADF.

The Heron-1 UAV taking off to provide Airborne Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (AISR) during XTD 2024. | IMAGE: FACEBOOK/MINDEFSG

XTD 24 also saw the inaugural participation of the RSAF's Heron-1 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), and the first-ever deployment of an integrated network of unmanned aerial and ground vehicles, as well as a tactical 5G communications network, at SWBTA’s Urban Operations Training Facility to support SAF and and ADF’s urban operations.

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