Special Operations Force ( Singapore ) The Special Operations Force ( SOF ) is a special forces unit in the Commando Formation of the Singapore Army and a component of the joint Special Operations Task Force . It specialises in operations such as direct action , counter - terrorism , hostage rescue and special reconnaissance , and is one of the few Singapore Armed Forces units trained in military freefall . It trains with United States special operational force such as the Special Forces , Delta Force , SEALs and DEVGRU . History . Formation . On 27 September 1972 , a flight engineer aboard Olympic Airways Flight 472 accidentally activated a hijack alarm . The Boeing 707 had taken off from Sydney , Australia bound for Paya Lebar Airport in Singapore with 31 passengers and 11 crew members at 10 : 30 am , Singapore time . Local authorities were not informed of the situation until four hours later . Following a flurry of conflicting reports , Australia ' s Civil Aviation Safety Authority warned Paya Lebar Airport " to be ready for a possible hijacking . " Flight 472 landed at Paya Lebar at 6 : 25 pm and was immediately surrounded by the police before the authorities could confirm that it was a false alarm . Nonetheless , the incident highlighted the lack of forces trained and equipped to deal with a hijack or hostage situation . This led to the creation of the SOF in 1985 as a dedicated unit to tackle such possible future contingencies . Operations . Operation Thunderbolt . Known operations include the 1991 rescue of Singapore Airlines Flight 117 at Singapore Changi Airport . The SIA Airbus A310 was hijacked by Pakistani militants on 26 March 1991 , en route from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore . Singapore Armed Forces ( SAF ) commandos stormed the Airbus at 6 : 50 am on 27 March with the operation over in 30 seconds and 123 passengers and crew were freed with no injuries to hostages or SOF commandos . All four hijackers were killed by gunfire . This was the first time the SOF was revealed to the public . The operation was unique on two accounts : first , it marked the first time Singapore resolved an aircraft hijacking with the use of deadly force . Second , it was the first time that an SAF unit had been sent on operations even before its existence had been officially acknowledged . The Ministry of Defence ( MINDEF ) and the SAF did not take the wraps off the SOF even after the black - clad commandos were photographed storming the SIA plane . They would consistently refer to them as commandos . MINDEF only acknowledged the SOF ' s existence on 20 February 1997 . This was 13 years after they were formed and six years after they first went into action . Current . Brig - Gen . Lam Shiu Tong , a SOF officer was posted at the SOTF as one of its first commanding officers in 2009 before relinquishing his role to become Commander of the 2nd People ' s Defence Force ( 2PDF ) and being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General . Role . The Special Operations Force is made up of an unspecified number . It is an elite Special Force which deals with situations such as hostage - taking , counter - terrorism and its war - time role of reconnaissance and strategic special operations . Troopers are trained in jungle - warfare , reconnaissance and counterterrorism , and are deployable by land , airborne assault and amphibious assault , specializing in free - falling , diving and long - range land insertion . They are each cross - trained to operate all types of weapons and equipment , though each trooper is assigned a specialist appointment in his team . Selection and training . It takes approximately four years to complete SOF training , including training in overseas deployments and free - falls , to qualify as an SOF trooper . Recruitment is open to all enlisted ranks and officers in the Singapore Armed Forces , subject to passing the Joint Special Forces Qualification Training and selection . Upon passing selection and a one year basic training , personnel receive the red beret and become a Special Operations Force trooper or officer , in addition to being part of the Commando formation .