Target vessel sank before it could be hammered at drill in Philippines
A decommissioned vessel meant to be struck by missiles during a joint live-fire event of the Philippine Armed Forces and the U.S. military sank out of its own volition shortly before modern weaponry had a chance to send it to its watery grave.
The sinking of the BRP Miguel Malvar happened roughly 30 nautical miles west of San Antonio, Zambales, Philippines, a U.S. spokesman for the exercise said in a statement on Monday.
Still, certain elements of the Balikatan 25 Maritime Strike live-fire portion of the drill, in which the vessel was to participate, would take place as planned, according to the statement.
US, Philippines expand exercise to territorial edges amid tension with China
The Miguel Malvar 'took on water while being positioned,' the statement reads, and sank at 7:20 a.m. at its intended location for the live-fire event. No personnel were injured, it notes.
'As is common, the vessel was selected because it exceeded its service life and was no longer suitable for normal operations,' the statement said.
While the vessel sank, the glitch did not sink the ability to conduct a command post exercise as part of the live-fire event. The statement did not detail what elements were still scheduled as part of the drill, but said 'the combined force will still achieve its training objectives.'
The Armed Forces of the Philippines and U.S. joint task forces 'will rehearse virtual and constructive fire missions,' the statement says. 'The training will integrate ground, maritime, and air-based sensors and shooters into a combined, joint fires network, as the Philippine and U.S. joint task forces exercise command and control while increasing combined warfighting capability.'
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