Phl's largest warship sails out of Manila

MANILA, Philippines - The BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the country’s largest warship, sailed out of Manila yesterday for the Malampaya natural gas projects area off Palawan in the West Philippine Sea.

The ship’s 162-member crew will spend Christmas and New Year at sea as the vessel is expected to reach its destination this morning.

A sendoff ceremony for the crew was held yesterday morning in South Harbor, Manila.

Rear Admiral Jose Luis Alano, commander of the Philippine Fleet, led the rites.

Gregorio del Pilar is the third warship deployed to the Malampaya project area, joining BRP Rajah Humabon and BRP Federico Martir.

“Other Navy ships are also deployed under the Naval Forces West in patrolling the West Philippine Sea and other areas surrounding Palawan,” said Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Omar Tonsay.

It will take around 18 hours of travel for the ship to reach Malampaya from Manila at a cruising speed of 14 knots or 25 kilometers per hour at sea.

“Her sendoff follows about a week of pre-deployment preparations mostly composed of refueling, re-watering, supply replenishment, final castoff inspections, and deployment and sovereignty patrol planning,” Tonsay said.

The ship will be placed under operational control of the Naval Forces West under Commodore Joseph Rostum Peña.

It will form part of the Navy’s forces operating in the vast West Philippine Sea.

Navy Capt. Alberto Cruz serves as the commanding officer of the ship.

The Navy deployed the warship amid a territorial row over the Spratly Islands, an area in the West Philippine Sea that is rich in mineral and marine resources.

The Philippines, China, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan claim either part or the entire Spratly Islands, subject of a territorial dispute in the region.

Defense officials have claimed that the deployment would not cause tension in the region as the Philippines is merely protecting its sovereignty.

Early this year, the Philippines acquired the Gregorio del Pilar from the US Coast Guard to beef up its territorial defense capabilities.

The ship, the Navy’s first Hamilton-class vessel, was acquired under the US Foreign Military Sales program. The government spent P450 million for the vessel’s transfer costs.

The 380-foot Gregorio del Pilar is now the Navy’s largest ship. It arrived in Philippine territory last August and was commissioned this month.

The US Coast Guard used the ship for drug and migrant interdiction, law enforcement, search and rescue, living marine resources protection, and defense readiness.

The Navy said the Gregorio del Pilar symbolized the revival of the military’s capability, which has been depleted due to lack of resources.

Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said the ship is an icon of the revival of the capability upgrade of the Armed Forces.

“This symbolizes our seriousness (to upgrade our military),” he said.

The US has vowed to provide the Philippines another Hamilton-class cutter to boost its capacity to defend its territory.