Safety Measures and Occasions for Military Demonstrations Such As Free Fall Jumps

Mr Don Wee asked the Minister for Defence with regard to military demonstrations, such as free fall jumps and parachute landings, whether the Ministry will consider (i) reviewing the safety measures and criteria for suitable conditions and (ii) limiting such exercises to training operations only.

The Red Lions have been a regular feature of the National Day Parade (NDP) since 1989 – 31 times over 34 years. Out of a total of about 3,400 individual parachute jumps, there have been four recorded injuries – a rate of 0.12%.

The safety record of our Red Lions during NDP is good and equivalent to that in regular military freefall training jumps – over the past five years, where the incident rate has also been about 0.1%.

SAF recognises that conditions during NDPs pose tighter constraints due to challenging wind conditions and limited landing area, among other factors. This is why only experienced parachutists are selected as Red Lions for NDP displays.

Parachutists must have made a minimum of 180 jumps to qualify for the selection tests. After they are selected for the team, they will undergo continuous and rigorous training to maintain their skills and proficiency. In fact, Red Lions selected for recent NDPs have clocked an average of 400 to 500 jumps and 20 years of jump experience each.

For jumps at the Floating Platform or HDB heartlands, landing sites are carefully selected. The sites must be flat, provide sufficient space and are free from obstructions and the wind conditions within safe thresholds. A safety management plan is developed to identity potential risks and design mitigating measures. Prior to the live jump tasks, safety briefings are conducted for all involved personnel, covering pre-operations drills and emergency procedures.

There are clearly prescribed "No-Go Criteria" for jumps. These criteria include, but are not limited to, prevailing visibility of the landing site by the parachutists, communications with the pilot and ground personnel, as well as acceptable weather and wind speed. Each factor is closely monitored leading up to the actual jump. If any factor exceeds the stipulated thresholds, the jump will be cancelled without hesitation. This was what happened during the 2015 NDP, where the Red Lions segment was cancelled due to low clouds obstructing the visibility of the landing sites. More recently, a planned morning jump on 7 August 2022 for the heartland NDP celebrations at Ghim Moh was postponed to the evening due to weather conditions.

While the Red Lions' safety record has been good thus far, following the incident involving 3WO Heng, a review committee led by the SAF Inspector-General Office (IGO) has been convened to assess the cause(s) of the specific incident, as well as to review near-misses and incidents in the past. The Committee includes independent experts outside the SAF in sky diving and military freefall. They have also been tasked to determine if there have been systemic changes, such as stronger wind, other weather conditions or local environment, which have increased the risks. Their findings will also have a bearing on routine training. The Committee has met and let me share some of their preliminary findings.

The measured surface wind speeds during the Red Lion rehearsals and NDP 2022 were within the acceptable range stipulated in the SAF’s safety regulations. As to the specific cause of the incident during NDP, the current assessment is that a sudden change in wind conditions during 3WO Heng’s final approach contributed to his hard landing. Red Lion 3WO Heng had assessed that his parachute canopy was unstable and executed the "parachute landing fall" technique in accordance with existing protocol. His actions mitigated the impact of the hard landing and, consequently, he did not suffer severe injuries.

I have asked the Committee why specific incidents like this had not occurred before, since changes in wind conditions cannot only have occurred for NDP 2022. They are consulting the external experts on this specific question, as well as reviewing in detail the approach route taken by 3WO Heng. Other issues to be examined include the impact of eddy currents caused by the design of the Floating Platform, the stage and the spectator stands. These findings will be relevant to the design and construction of the NS Square, which will be a permanent site for subsequent NDPs.

The Committee is also examining possible measures to enhance safety. One change being considered is increasing the distance between parachutists. This will provide the parachutists more reaction time as they approach the landing zone and enable the landing to be more spaced out.

The SAF’s priority is safety, and the Red Lions will continue to be a part of our NDP celebrations, only if safety can be ensured, with appropriate new measures, including those recommended by the Review Committee.