Thursday, July 10, 2014

P2.680-billion Israel radar equipment to boost PHL’s airspace defense

From the Business Mirror (Jul 10): P2.680-billion Israel radar equipment to boost PHL’s airspace defense
 
Barring any hitch, the country will be having three radars by next year, courtesy of Israel, that would guard and monitor the country’s airspace against any foreign intrusion.
 
The Department of National Defense (DND) said on Thursday that it was already in the final stage of negotiations with the Israeli government for the delivery of three brand-new radars that would secure the country’s airspace on a 24-hour basis.
 
“The prenegotiation itself required a detailed discussion of the project, especially the technical portion. This has to be formalized. So we’re going through the negotiation proper now,” Defense Undersecretary Eduardo Batac said.
 
“The values have to be agreed upon, because this will guide us as to the payment scheme that we will adopt,” added Batac, who is the chairman of the DND’s Special Bids and Awards Committee 2 (Coast Watch South Project).
 
Batac said that, if everything pushes through, the country could have its first radar before June next year.
 
Two of the radars should replace those that are currently installed in Pasoquin in Ilocos Norte and at Lubang in Mindoro, while the third one should be installed in Palawan.
 
“The two prior sites are actually old radar sites of the Philippine Air Force,” Batac said, adding that, because of the absence of any program to maintain them, they had become unoperational.
 
Batac said, while the country still has the radar at Wallace in La Union, it only intermittently function.
 
“Radars are supposed to be 24/7 facilities for purposes of detection against intrusions into our airspace,” Batac said.
 
He added the P2.680-billion project even comes with a “sweetener,” wherein Israel agreed to provide a “support radar” that could be used to secure the country’s airspace for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit late next year.
 
“This is a government-to-government procurement arrangement that was arrived at. This is the product of [a]series of negotiations by defense and the Armed Forces of the Philippines that started, I think, in 2011,” Batac said.
 

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