The BRP Antonio Luna (FF-151), one of two guided-missile frigates of the Philippine Navy (PN), left its base in Subic Bay, Zambales on Wednesday to join this year’s edition of the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise.
RIMPAC, which will be held in Honolulu, Hawaii from June 29 to August 4, is an international maritime exercise led by the United States Navy and is done to promote stability in the Pacific Region.
Meanwhile, Marine units of the Philippines and the United States are conducting exercises that would enhance their interoperability in combined tactical and heliborne operations.
Formally called the “Marine Aviation Support Activity 2022” (MASA 22), the exercises began on Monday and end on June 17, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs office chief Col. Jorry Baclor said in a statement Tuesday night.
It is a bilateral exercise between the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) and the United States Marine Corps (USMC).
Navy spokesperson Commander Benjo Negranza, in a media interview, said the Antonio Luna left Naval Operating Base Subic around 10:30 a.m.
PN flag-officer-in-command Vice Admiral Adeluis Bordado and the Naval Task Group (NTG) 80.5 graced the send-off ceremonies for the ship.
The ship will make a stopover in Guam for refueling, he added.
“The exercise will start on June 29, and we expect the ship will be there three days before that. BRP Antonio Luna will also make a stopover in Guam before proceeding to Hawaii,” Negranza said.
He said the Philippines is participating in the RIMPAC to show its commitment to “regional stability and cooperation and commitment” to allied navies.
Negranza earlier said NTG 80.5 will help develop, maintain, and enhance the Navy’s pursuit of maritime collaboration with its counterparts through the exercise.
“(RIMPAC is) one of the PN’s major International Defense and Security Engagement activities,” he added.
The PN’s participation in RIMPAC 2022, themed “Capable, Adaptive, Partners,” will be its third in the largest and premier maritime exercise, after its maiden participation in 2018 and its sophomore run in 2020.
This year’s iteration is scheduled to include 26 naval forces all across the world.
In the 2018 RIMPAC, the Navy deployed the offshore patrol vessel, BRP Andres Bonifacio (PS-17) and the landing dock BRP Davao Del Sur (LD-602) while on the 2020 iteration of the maritime exercise, the PN sent the country’s first missile frigate, the BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150).
Both the BRP Jose Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna are capable of anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and electronic warfare operations.
The contract for the two ships was worth P16 billion and an additional P2 billion was spent for weapon systems and munitions.
As for the Marine exercises, “Activities commenced on June 6 in the province of Palawan and will end on June 17 that includes combined joint forward arming and refueling demonstration, and a lecture on unmanned air systems operations,” Baclor said.
He said four C-17 transport aircraft of the US Air Force arrived in Laoag City on Monday, along with a US C-130 plane that landed Tuesday carrying personnel and equipment for the second leg of the exercise from July 18 to 22.
This series will feature lectures on sensor operations, air surveillance, air defense, and high-mobility artillery rocket system infiltration.
The MASA 22 also includes integrated and joint interoperability activities, such as coastal defense forward arming and refueling, and subject matter exchanges for unmanned aviation systems and engineering with participants from the Naval Air Wing of the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Air Force.
PMC Commandant Maj. Gen. Nestor C. Herico recognized aviation’s vital role in military operations as he underscored the need to have a strong Navy and Marines.
Meanwhile, Lt. Gen. Steven R. Rudder, US Marine Corps Forces Pacific commander, acknowledged that “training side-by-side increases a combined military capability and friendship, which directly contributes strength to this alliance.”
Rudder also thanked the Philippine government for supporting the conduct of the MASA 22.