Women’s Boot Camp returns with a youth edition

After a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Women's Boot Camp (WBC) was back to give young women a glimpse of life in National Service (NS).

Over 30 young women took part in the camp held at Maju Camp over the weekend of 11 to 12 Feb.

This year's edition targeted female youths aged 18 to 35, many of whom had just graduated from junior college or polytechnic.

The camp was initiated by the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence and supported by the Singapore Armed Forces Volunteer Corps.

Here's what the girls went through over the two days:

Participants learning to handle the Singapore Assault Rifle (SAR) 21 – the Army's staple weapon.

"It's harder than it looks, especially the unloading (drill)… The weapon is also heavy but the good thing is that the trainers taught us how to handle the weight," said actress Jae Liew, 32 (foreground).

Participants learning casualty evacuation techniques. They also tried out various lifts and drags without a stretcher.

Ashlyn Mohan (right), 19, said that the two-day experience showed her the team spirit aspect of national service. 

"Whenever there was a 'man-down' simulation (during the route march), everyone rushed to help; there was no hesitation. 

"It was comforting to see that no one gets left behind."

Participants using a mess tin filled with hot water to heat up field rations – their dinner for the day.

Watch as they get their first taste of field rations:

After an early morning reveille (a signal given to wake soldiers up) the next day, the participants apply camo paint on their faces and stretch to prepare for their route march.

Participants singing along to Army cadence songs on a 2km route march around the camp. The march included a 100m simulated casualty drill.

For the first time in WBC, the participants fired blanks as part of room clearing procedures with the SAR 21.

Said Ashlyn (not pictured): "I was quite scared at first because the whole experience of handling the rifle is very new to me. But my trainer was very nice and told me to take it step by step.

"We also did a few practice rounds, so when we came down to the drill, I knew exactly what to do."

Nur Khaliesah, 20, trying her hand at firing blanks with the SAR 21, as part of Instinctive Action Drills before taking on the room clearing mission.

"For soldiers to do this (urban operation training) day in day out is probably quite tiring because it takes a lot of coordination, a lot of energy and a lot of teamwork. So, I really respect that."

Catch the girls in action at the boot camp: