PN to acquire 3 more MPACs

From the Philippine News Agency (Nov 22): PN to acquire 3 more MPACs

In line with its efforts to boost its interdiction capability, the Philippine Navy has said it is acquiring three more multi-purpose attack craft (MPAC) to add to the eight units already in service. Col. Omar Tonsay, PN spokesperson, said the three MPACs are already in the acquisition program. "These are already in the program and in Stage 1 of the acquisition process," he added. Stage 1 refers to acquisition planning and requirement definition, while Stage 2 will determine who the possible proponent of the project will be. Stages 3 and 4 refer to the actual costing and possible delivery date of the project. Tonsay declined to comment on how long the acquisition process will take or whether it will be completed in a year. "I cannot comment on dates as a lot can happen in one year," the PN spokesperson said. Three of the PN's MPACs were sourced from Taiwan while the remaining five were ordered from Filipino shipbuilder Propmech Corporation, which is based in Subic Bay, Zambales. These ships are 16.5 meters long, 4.76 meters wide, have a draft of one meter, a top speed of 45 knots and a range of 300 nautical miles. The hull is made of high-quality aluminum and is crewed by one officer and four enlisted personnel. It is capable of carrying 16 fully-equipped troopers or two tons of cargo. The MPAC is capable of operating in territorial waters up to "Sea State 3" (slight waves) without any system degradation. It is armed with one .50 caliber and two 7.62mm machine guns.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=473744