U.S, Philippines & Partner Nations Sink 2 Decommissioned Ships In Balikatan Exercise

Forces of the U.S, the Philippines, Japan and Canada combined their air-land and sea systems to sink two decommissioned ships off the western Northern Luzon coast during the Balikatan exercise last week.

This is the largest annual military exercise between the U.S and the Philippines, held to enhance the readiness and maritime defence capabilities of the participant nations while showcasing their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

The Joint Task Force Maritime Strike, or MARSTRIKE, is a 2-day live-fire event, which is a major part of the drills, which brings together sensors, missile systems, aircraft and naval assets of the countries to coordinate attacks against the set targets.

Commanding general of the U.S. Joint Task Force-Forward said, “The MARSTRIKE demonstrated the strength of our combined and joint force by integrating sensors and shooters across multiple domains to achieve a shared tactical objective.”

On the first day of the drills, the combined forces sank the decommissioned Philippine Navy vessel BRP Quezon with a Japan Ground Self-Defence Force Type-88 surface-to-ship missile, while the U.S. Army used High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems to conduct strikes.

JGSDF Lt. Col. Ishikawa Daisuke said, “Deploying the Type-88 Surface-to-Ship Missile in this complex MARSTRIKE allowed us to validate our tactical integration with U.S. and Philippine forces.”

Philippine Air Force FA-50PH Fighting Eagles and A-29 Super Tucanos also sank the BRP Rajah Sulayman, another decommissioned Philippine Navy vessel, which was used as a target on the second day of the exercise.

Many naval assets played a supporting role in the drills, like the U.S. Marine Corps’ Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System and Marine Air Defense Integrated System, along with fixed-wing aircraft from participating forces, unmanned aerial systems and the Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Charlottetown.

Philippine Marine Corps Col. Dennis Hernandez said, “The successful execution of the Maritime Strike activity demonstrates the growing level of interoperability between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and our allies.”