SINGAPORE, July 6 — One of Singapore’s most powerful military machines found itself in a decidedly unmilitary scrape yesterday, when a Leopard tank brushed up against a traffic light outside Parliament House during a National Day Parade (NDP) preview.

The hefty, armoured vehicle was making a right turn past the Supreme Court when it clipped the traffic signal, leaving the light visibly askew — and the Internet lighting up.

A video posted to Facebook page SG Road Vigilante at 9.55pm yesterday captured the awkward moment.

By 9am today, it had racked up nearly half a million views, 2,400 likes and hundreds of comments, ranging from technical diagnoses to tongue-in-cheek jabs.

Singapore’s NDP mobile column — the traditional parade of military vehicles — typically inspires awe and patriotic pride. But this time, the runaway star was a tank that literally made a wrong turn.

Most netizens treated the incident as a harmless hiccup rather than a scandal, with many voicing concern for the tank driver — presumably a young full-time national serviceman.

“Guys, have a little heart. He’s probably a NSF earning minimum allowance... Let’s hope the unit or the RSM won’t tekan the poor kid too much...” wrote Facebook user Chen WL.

Another commenter, Low Beng Keat, added: “If there is a mistake, get up and move on, learn and be mindful the next time. No big deal, don’t take it too hard on our soldiers guarding and defending our homeland.”

Several commenters speculated that the vehicle might have experienced mechanical failure.

Lucas Por, who said he was a former technician for similar tanks, noted: “(The) driver even has trouble pivoting while stationary, which should be an easy feat.”

Another user, Wo King Tre, diagnosed it as a possible “steering linkage failure”, and said the operator did well to keep the situation under control: “Just have to limp the tank to safe spot for the technicians to perform recovery.”

To the driver’s credit, many praised his swift reaction in stopping the tank before things got worse — a sentiment summed up neatly by user Janice Lau: “Tank-ful no one is hurt.”

The Ministry of Defence and the Land Transport Authority have yet to comment on the matter.

Singapore marks its 60th year of independence this August, and if Saturday’s preview is anything to go by, the country’s defences — and sense of humour — are still going strong.