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Singapore Navy chief Lai Chung Han steps down, Rear-Admiral Lew Chuen Hong takes over

RADM Lew Chuen Hong (left), currently Chief of Staff – Naval Staff, will take over as Chief of Navy on 16 June 2017. Rear-Admiral (RADM) Lai Chung Han (right), the outgoing Chief of Navy, has served the SAF for 25 years since 1992.
RADM Lew Chuen Hong (left), currently Chief of Staff – Naval Staff, will take over as Chief of Navy on 16 June 2017. Rear-Admiral (RADM) Lai Chung Han (right), the outgoing Chief of Navy, has served the SAF for 25 years since 1992.

Rear-Admiral Lai Chung Han will be stepping down and Rear-Admiral Lew Chuen Hong will take over as the Singapore Navy chief, said the Ministry of Defence on Monday (22 May).

Lew is currently the Chief of Staff – Naval Staff, a post he has held since August 2016.

This change is part of the continuing process of leadership renewal in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), said Mindef.

Lew, 40, joined the SAF in 1995. During the course of his military career, Lew has held appointments including Commanding Officer of the Missile Corvette RSS Vengeance, Deputy Commander of the Maritime Security Task Force, Head Joint Manpower Department, Head Joint Plans and Transformation Department, and Fleet Commander.

Outside the SAF, Lew also served as Director of the Research & Enterprise Division in the Ministry of Trade & Industry.

Lai, 44, has held the post of Chief of Navy since 1 August 2014.

During Lai’s tenure, the contract for the acquisition of two additional Type-218SG submarines was signed. The Navy also took delivery of four Littoral Mission Vessels, of which the first-of-class, RSS Independence, was commissioned by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on 5 May 2017.

Most recently, the Navy hosted the inaugural Singapore International Maritime Review (IMR) on 15 May this year, which involved 46 warships and four aircraft as well as more than 50 military delegations from 44 countries.