JERUDONG, Wednesday 6 July 2011 – The long awaited 3rd Brunei Darussalam International Defence Exhibition (BRIDEX 2011) has finally opened with His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Negara Brunei Darussalam, Minister of Defence and Supreme Commander of Royal Brunei Armed Forces officiating the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony took place at the Dome at the BRIDEX International Conference Centre in Jerudong.

After officiating the opening ceremony, His Majesty was escorted by the Deputy Minister of Defence and Major General Dato Hj Mustappa bin Haji Sirat, and Dato Paduka Seri Haji Aminuddin Ihsan bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin, Commander of Royal Brunei Armed Forces, to the VIP Viewing Area, BRIDEX Dome to view the Air Demonstrations.

It was a glorious day at the BRIDEX exhibition venue, where exhibitors and guests enjoyed spectacular air demonstrations, which featured aircrafts from Brunei, USA, Malaysia, Singapore and Japan. Aircrafts that participated in the air demonstration was PC-7 from Brunei, C-17 from USA, Mig-29 from Malaysia, US-1A Flying Boat from Japan, and F-16 and Chinook from Singapore.

Following the airshows, His Majesty was escorted to view the outdoor static display, showcased by Singapore, Indonesia, Italy, Canada and France. There were also land demonstrations featuring vehicles by countries such as Singapore, Indonesia and Switzerland.

The Alap-Alap is the official aerobatic display team of the Royal Brunei Air Force (TUDB) for BRIDEX 2011, comprising of 3 TUDB Pilots Captain (LS) Richard Frick, Captain (U) Pg Md Zulhusmi and Richard Homer.

The Royal Brunei Air Force also showcased Brunei’s own elite parachute team, the Parachute Airborne Tactical Delivery Unit (PATDU), consisting of 11 parachutists. Along with 13 other parachutists from PASKHAS of Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Udara (TNI AU), the 24 parachutists performed a joint parachute display, with 24 signifying the 24 years of friendship between TUDB and TNI AU.

After viewing the air and land demonstrations, His Majesty also consented to launch the Brunei Darussalam Defence White Paper 2011 at the Lower Level of the BRIDEX Dome.

The Brunei Darussalam Defence White Paper 2011, ‘Defending the Nations Sovereignty: Expanding Roles in Wider Horizons’, identifies 4 key areas in the development of defence: KNOWLEDGE – which focuses on gaining greater situational awareness; INTEGRATION – particularly of the Joint Force with the RBAF’s C4ISR system; WEIGHT – which involves increasing the RBAF’s ability to deliver effectively; and SPEED – where mobility and readiness are key.

His Majesty had also consented to tour the two exhibition halls, where 163 exhibitors from 32 countries ranging from Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, to Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Spain, Estonia and Belgium.

The atmosphere at the exhibition hall was enthusiastic as the Exhibitors were excited to showcase the most recent and innovative defence equipments and security solutions. Local exhibitors such as LS & A Sdn Bhd, Soartech Systems, Excorp and Sri Sentosa are also participating in BRIDEX 2011. The Bruneian police and security forces also make up the prominent Brunei Pavilion.

The inaugural International Fleet Review (BIFR) was also graced by His Majesty. A total of 22 ships from 13 countries participated in the BIFR. The Royal Brunei Navy showcased six of their own ships, whereas other countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, India, Australia, New Zealand, China, United States of America and Pakistan also showcased their ships for the BIFR.

The launch of BRIDEX 2011 continued into the afternoon with a 9 hole tee-off at the Social Golf tournament, organised by the Ministry of Defence at the Empire Hotel & Country Club.  Foreign VIP delegates and exhibitors were also given the opportunity to engage in another 9-hole night session of golf.