Huat ah!

SINGAPORE, May 21. A Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) parachute jump instructor fell to his death during a freefall parachute training session with SAF commando team in Bloemfontein, South Africa yesterday.

The republic's Defence Ministry said today the 53-year-old instructor with the rank of First Warrant Officer jumped off a Republic of Singapore Air Force C-130 aircraft at a height of 12,500 feet to conduct a formation jump.

The six-man formation broke off at 3,500 feet to deploy their parachutes but the instructor was seen spiralling downwards to the ground and was found unconscious at about 4.45pm (Singapore time), it said.

The soldier was brought to a hospital in Bloemfontein but was pronounced dead about an hour later.

The instructor who was from the Commando Training Institute was part of a 51-member SAF commando team participating in the SAF freefall training, which is being conducted from April 27 to this Sunday.

The SAF conducts freefall training in South Africa once every two years.

The reason why that im posting this because, the person who died is my mother's friend. Who has joined that the army about 20 over years alr, which is the same as my mother.

My mother just called back from South Africa, she told me that everything just happen so sudden. She even recalled and told me that, they have been chattin and doing alot of stuffs tgt for the past 4 weeks at South Africa and they are just staying side by side. And the nxt moment, his dead. My mother and the rest of the army ppl there couldnt hold their tears.

And this guy here has been looking forward for his retirement nxt year after so many years of service in the commando. He is really a nice person, even looking after the ladies in the army. I've seen him before but not very close. His body has landed Singapore today with his family as his family has rushed to South Africa to collect his body.

The rest of the commando team will be returning tmr and Tuesday will be his funeral. *Salute*

Lyf is really damn fragile. U can see a person so lively and everything seems so peaceful but the nxt minute, dead. I cannot imagine if this has happened to my mother back at South Africa. *Touch wood* So, we must really and owaz treasure the people around us before its too late.

Posted by Shermane Ten at 5:50 PM