On 5 May 2000, the landing ship tank (LST) RSS Endurance departed Singapore on a round-the-world voyage called “Sail Navy 2000”, with the aim of “Making Waves, Forging Global Friendship”. RSS Endurance visited nine ports, including Honolulu, Acapulco, Toulon, and Jeddah. As Singapore’s maritime ambassadors, the crew made courtesy calls to naval officials, held open houses to promote Singapore, and conducted short tours on board the ship.
The crew also conducted exercises and drills with host countries. Enroute to Toulon, RSS Endurance held a drill with the French Navy, involving 34 helicopter landings on her flight deck while crossing the English Channel. In New York, she participated in the United States Navy International Naval Review 2000 during Independence Day celebrations.
Returning to Singapore on 2 September 2000, RSS Endurance became the first Republic of Singapore Navy ship to circumnavigate the globe, covering 25,000 nautical miles in four months. This was a significant achievement for a vessel commissioned just in March 2000 by then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Tony Tan Keng Yam.
To commemorate the voyage, commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Siow Chee Khiang presented a wooden box containing nine glass tubes of mementos from each port to Rear Admiral Lui Tuck Yew, then Chief of Navy. Each tube was marked with the collection site’s name and coordinates, and contained items like sediments from the Panama Canal, seawater from the Indian Ocean, and embroidery from the South China Sea. The box’s inner lid featured an etched world map showing the voyage route and the ship’s badge, with her hull number 207 and a crocodile wielding a trident, symbolising the LST’s amphibious nature. The motto, “Achieving Always”, encapsulates the ship’s ethos and aspirations.