Phippines Plans to buy Indonesian Spy Plane

Irish Air Corps (CASA CN 235 aircraft). (under creative commons)

MANILA, Philippines – The government plans to procure a spy plane from Indonesia and a troop transport aircraft from Italy, the Department of National Defense (DND) said yesterday.

Peter Paul Galvez, DND spokesman, said the long-range maritime patrol and surveillance plane is manufactured in Indonesia under a joint venture agreement with Spain.  (Click here to read more)

Source;

PhilSTAR.com

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PAF to acquire air defense radars--PhilSTAR.com.ph

An Alenia MRCS-403 3D-radar of the Austrian Air Force (imaqe under GNU Free documentation License)

MANILA, Philippines - The Air Force will acquire at least three air defense radars during the term of President Aquino to boost its capabilities in securing the country’s territory.

Air Force spokesman Lt. Col. Miguel Okol said the radars would be used to protect the country’s airspace.

“We are looking at two to three radars. These may be placed in traditional areas like La Union or Mindoro or possibly in the West Philippine Sea,” Okol told The STAR in a telephone interview yesterday.

He said they are still estimating the cost of the radars. Officials have yet to finalize the details of the acquisition plan... (click here to continue reading)

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Gregorio del Pilar Class Frigates to be equipped with Harpon anti-ship missiles

The Canadian frigate HMCS Regina (FFH 334) fires a Harpoon anti-ship missile during a Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) sinking exercise (in public domain)

In a report publish by Philippine online news sites, a ranking Department of National Defense (DND) official said, that the Gregorio Del Pilar class frigates of the Philipine Navy is to be equipped with Harpoon, anti-ship missile system, sophisticated radars capable of detecting and tracking incoming surface threats and an anti-missile and torpedo decoying systems, to make these Frigates a more capable vessels to satisfy our minimum deterrent capability as far as naval defense is concern

The official said the Harpoon is the ideal missile system for the Del Pilar Class, noting that one of their sister-ship, the USCGC Mellon (WHEC-717), has been fitted with the Harpoon missile launchers and test fired the weapons in January, 1990.

Sources:

1. MB.com.ph

2. PhilSTAR.com

3. Balita

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Philippines purchasing an MK38 Mod 2 Gun Systems for Navy

MK 38 Mod 2 Machine Gun System (in public domain)

Based from the US Department of Defense website, the "BAE Systems Land and Armaments Inc., U.S. Combat Systems Division, Louisville, Ky., is being awarded a $24,257,531 firm-fixed-price contract for 21 MK38 Mod 2 machine gun systems and associated spare parts in support of the U.S. Navy and the Philippines."

This contract is a combined purchased of the US Navy and the Philippine Government  under the Foreign Military Sales Program of the United States.

 
Source:

US DoD

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"Japan to Philippines: Do you want Coast Guard ships or not?"--Inquirer Global Nation

Japan Coast Guard Small Patrol Vessel, PS202 Hotaka. (in public domain)

Saying that “the ball is in the Philippines’ court,” Japan has revealed that its plan to provide the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) with 12 brand new patrol boats had yet to officially take off.

Read more by clicking here 


Source:

Inquirer Global Nation

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Coast Guard to procure additional P152M disaster-response equipment--PIA

MANILA, Sept. 3 (PIA) -- The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) will procure additional P152-million disaster response equipment to further beef up PCG’s disaster response capability. 

Read more by clicking this link

Source:

Philippine Information Agency

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"US helps Philippines fortify defense in Palawan"--Inquirer Global Nation

Pursuing its pivot to Asia strategy, the United States on Thursday handed over to the Philippines new equipment to improve surveillance and law enforcement operations in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as President Benigno Aquino prepared to meet China’s leader for talks that may include territorial disputes in those waters.

Read more by clicking this link


Source: 

Ingquirer global nation

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Datu Kalantiaw Class Frigate

BRP Rajah Humabon (PF11)
(In Public Domain)

The Cannon class destroyer escorts were built primarily for ocean anti-submarine warfare escort service during World War II. The lead ship, USS Cannon (DE-99) was commissioned on 26 September 1943 at Wilmington, Delaware. Of the 116 ships ordered 44 were canceled and six commissioned directly into the Free French Forces. Destroyer escorts were regular companions escorting the vulnerable cargo ships.

The class was also known as the DET type from their Diesel Electric Tandem drive^. The DET's substitution for a turbo-electric propulsion plant was the primary difference with the predecessor Buckley ("TE") class. The DET was in turn replaced with a direct drive diesel plant to yield the design of the successor Edsall ("FMR") class.

Under the Philippine Navy, it was re-clasfied as a Frigate and todate, BRP Rajah Humabon (PF-11) formerly the USS Atherton (DE-169), remains as the only confirmed commissioned ship of this class as of 2010.

In Service:

1. BRP Rajah Humabon (PF11)

Source:

Wikipedia - Canon Class Destroyer Escort

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Gregorio del Pilar Class Frigates

BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF15)
(Under Creative Commons)

The Gregorio del Pilar class is a ship class urrently in service to the Philippine Navy, and are currently its largest class of naval combatants in its fleet.   

Formerly used by the US Coast Guard as Hamilton class high endurance cutters, Under the Philippine Navy, after undergoing upgrades and modification it was classified as Frigates.

In Service:

• BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF15)
• BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PF16) - Currently undergoing refit and modifications

BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PF16)
(Under Creative Commons)

General Characteristics:

Type:	Frigate
Displacement:	3,250 tons
Length:	378 ft (115 m)
Beam:	43 ft (13 m)
Draft:	8.75 ft (2.67 m)
Installed power:	5,800 hp (4,300 kW)
Propulsion:	Combined diesel or gas (CODOG) system 2× Fairbanks-Morse 38TD8-1/8-12 12-cylinder diesel engines generating 7,000 hp (5,200 kW) 2× Pratt & Whittney FT4A-6 gas turbines producing 36,000 hp (27,000 kW)
Speed:	28 knots (52 km/h) max
Range:	14,000 nautical miles (25,900 km)
Endurance:	45 Days
Boats and landing craft carried:	Two RHIB
Complement:	80
Sensors and processing systems:	Raytheon/Furuno AN/SPS-73 navigation and surface search radar and Sperry Mk 92 mod. 1 Fire Control System
Armament:	1 x Oto Melara Mk.75 76mm/62 gun 6 x M2 Browning 12.7mm/50 machine guns 2 x Loral Hycor Mk.36 6-barrelled Super Rapid Blooming Offboard Chaff (SRBOC) decoy launchers
Aircraft carried:	1 x BO-105C

Source:

Wikipedia - Gregorio del Pilar Class Frigate

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MIguel Malvar Class Corvettes

Philippine Navy ship BRP Cebu (PS-28) off Tabawan Island, 
Tawi-Taw, 27th June 2009
(Under Creative Commons)

The Miguel Malvar class is a class of patrol corvettes in the Philippine Navy, and is considered to be its oldest class of corvettes. Formerly used by the US Navy as Admirable-class minesweepers.

In the Philippine Navy, the vessels after undergoing upgrades and modifications were re-categorized as corvettes.

One ship, the former USN USS Quest (AM-281) was supposedly a member of this class but was converted into a non-combatant Presidential Yacht by the Philippine Navy in 1948 as the RPS Pag-asa (APO-21) which was later renamed as RPS Santa Maria, and as RPS/BRP Mount Samat.

In Active Duty:

1. BRP Miguel Malvar
2. BRP Magat Salamat
3. BRP Sultan Kudarat
4. BRP Cebu
5. BRP Pangasinan
6. BRP Iloilo

General Characteristics

Type:	Patrol Corvette
Displacement:	640 tons (standard), 914 Tons (Full Load)
Length:	184.5 ft (56.2 m)
Beam:	33 ft (10 m)
Draft:	9.75 ft (2.97 m)
Installed power:	2,200 hp
Propulsion:	Main: 2 x GM 12-278A diesel engines Auxiliary: 2 x GM 6-71 diesel engines with 100 kW gen and 1 x GM 3-268A diesel engine with 60 kW gen
Speed:	16 Knots (maximum),
Range:	6,600 nmi at 11 knots (20 km/h)
Complement:	85
Sensors and processing systems:	SPS-50 Surface Search Radar (on PS-23) SPS-21D Surface Search Radar (on PS-19 and PS-28) CRM-NIA-75 Surface Search Radar (on PS-29, PS-31, and PS-32) SPS-53A Surface Search Radar (on PS-20) RCA SPN-18 I/J-band Navigation Radar [2]
Armament:	1 x 3"/50 caliber gun (76 mm) Mk22 2 to 6 Bofors 40 mm gun (single or 1-3 twin) 3 × 20 mm Oerlikon guns 4 x 12.7 mm 50 cal machine guns

Source:

Wikipedia - Gen. Miguel Malvar Corvettes

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