2 frigates undergoing bidding to be the most capable in the Philippine Navy

The Philippine Navy said on Wednesday the two frigates, now undergoing bidding at the Department of National Defense, will be the most capable vessels in its inventory.

PN spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Gregory Fabic said the two vessels, which have a contract of P18 billion, will be armed with a variety of sensors and weapons capable of detecting and neutralizing air, surface, and submarine threats.

Once the bidding process is completed within this year, the two frigates are expected to be delivered by 2017.

"The frigates (now undergoing bidding) will be the most capable vessels in the PN inventory once constructed and commissioned into service," Fabic said.

At the moment, the two most capable ships in the PN are the two Gregorio Del Pilar class frigates acquired from the United States Coast Guard.

These vessels are armed with 76mm Oto Melara auto-cannon, a variety of light weapons and capable of handling, launching, and maintaining a helicopter, in this case the three brand-new AgustaWestland AW-109 "Power" helicopters, and capable of speeds up to 29 knots.

Some technical specifications of the DND's P18-billion frigate program have been revealed by MaxDefense: Philippines, a blogsite for Philippine defense-related matters.

This includes a capability to conduct air-to-air warfare (AAW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), anti-submarine warfare (ASW), and electronic warfare (EW).

Aside from this, these naval vessels should be able to do extended maritime patrol with an embarked helicopter and operating up to Sea State 6.

It must also have a range of 4,500 nautical miles at 15 knots, endurance of 30 days in tropical condition, and capable of running up to 25 knots of continuous speed.

Navigation equipment of the two ships, at a minimum, must consist of two navigation radars, GPS, depth sounding set, and vessel tracking system compatible to PN's existing system.


The frigates' weapon system, at a minimum, should consist of a 76-mm gun, stabilized secondary gun, four .50-caliber machine guns, surface-to-surface missile launchers, surface-to-air missile launching system, and anti-submarine torpedoes. 

Article Source: PNA