The Armed Forces of the Philippines have been
always praying for the time they can relive the time when they were considered
the second modern and sophisticated armed force in Asia next to Japan-that was in
the 1960’s from there on we were on a steady decline.
The booting out of the US Bases in the 1990’s left
the country in a dilemma, because we cannot fill the very big gap in terms
military equipment that can defend our nation.
Thankfully, after decades of neglect, the AFP is
slowly picking up and arming itself with sophisticated and modern weaponry.
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| The first of the HDF-2600 frigate for the Philippine Navy, which will be named BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150) (photo credit to Maxdefense) |
The much awaited missile-armed frigate BRP Jose
Rizal (FF-150), is scheduled to be launched at the shipyard of Hyundai Heavy
Industries (HHI) in South Korea's southeastern city of Ulsan on Thursday, is
the first combat vessel to be designed and purposely acquired for the
Philippine Navy (PN), whose fleet is mostly composed of second-hand ships
acquired from allies.
"She (BRP Jose Rizal) is the first combat ship
to be designed and acquired for the PN along with her sister-ship, the BRP
Antonio Luna (FF-151) whose steel-cutting is also scheduled for this
week," said Navy spokesperson Captain Jonathan Zata in an interview with
the Philippine News Agency(PNA).
The two ships are expected to be commissioned into
Philippine Navy service by 2020 and 2021, and as per Zata the ships will be will
be armed with a variety of sensors and weapons capable of detecting and
neutralizing surface, sub-surface and air threats.
And will help securing the country's maritime
chokepoints or primary sea routes used for trade, logistics, and naval
operations from the above-mentioned threats.
The two frigates are worth PHP16 billion with
another PHP2 billion set aside for its weapon systems and munition.
The brand new AugustaWestland AW-159 anti-submarine
helicopters once integrated with the operations of the two missile-armed
frigates will extend the range of the ships in detecting and neutralizing
surface and sub-surface threats, he added.
The two anti-submarine helicopters will be
commissioned this May 27, coinciding with the PN’s 121st anniversary.
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Report from PNA
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