MAJ Liew, 32, said she needs to ensure that both her crew and the ship are ready round the clock to respond to any security threats along the Singapore straits.
Besides routine physical assessments and training, she said the key to keeping morale high is having a healthy crew and organising team-bonding events.
For instance, they organise horror movie nights, competitions within the crew with the Playstation on board, outings to Sentosa, and even do yoga together to keep fit.
MAJ Liew added that the crew had high trust in her leadership, and scored consistent mission successes for assessments the past year, both of which contributed to the win.
“If anything, this award seals my belief that it is truly the little things that matter – the extra hour we put into training, the small acts of care we provide for each other, and a strong emphasis on family spirit, which lifts us up on difficult days and makes it possible to keep going.”
The 1st Commando Battalion also won the Best Combat Unit award, making it their 21st consecutive win. This makes the battalion the most awarded unit in this category, having won it a total of 38 times.
LTC Kok Yi Long, 36, the battalion’s commanding officer, said that even though the unit is proud to have won for 21 consecutive years, he wishes to guard against complacency.
He added: “I wanted to ensure that every soldier that comes into the 1st Commando Battalion leaves the unit as a better person.”