Saturday, January 18, 2020

Navy begins crash course on submarine operations

From the Business Mirror (Jan 15, 2020): Navy begins crash course on submarine operations (By Rene Acosta)

The Philippine Navy is beefing up its stock of knowledge and skill in submarine operations, in preparation for its planned procurement of such vessels for the first time.

The acquisition from France of underwater assets was part of the Navy’s effort to upgrade its capability under the overall modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

On Tuesday, Navy officials and future submariners engaged French military officials and submarine experts in discussion under a four-day subject-matter expert (SME) exchange on underwater operations and warfare.

“In preparation for the upcoming acquisition of the submarine as part of the Philippine Navy’s modernization program, a four-day subject-matter expert exchange with the French Navy SMEs was conducted,” said Lt. Commander Maria Christina Roxas said in a news statement.

The French Navy delegation, who were received at the Navy headquarters upon their arrival, were led by Col. Emmanuel Peltriaux, the nonresident defense attaché to the Philippines.

The mission also included two French submariners, Commander Jean-Christophe Marie and Commander Jeremy Bachelier, whom Roxas’s statement said, are “specialists in French Submarine Forces and Surface Forces.”

France is being eyed as the source of submarines for the Navy, although other countries, including South Korea and Russia, have also expressed their interests in supplying the underwater requirement of the Navy.

The Navy has kept its eye on French Scorpène-class submarine.

Roxas said the French mission was borne by Navy chief Vice Admiral Robert Empedrad’s bilateral talks with Admiral Christophe Prazuck, the chief of France’s Navy, during the Euronaval 2018 Exhibition held in October 2018 in Paris, France.

During their discussion, Prazuck committed to send a team of French Navy SMEs from “different warfare fields to engage the Philippine Navy as consultants, and share best practices and provide recommendations that could contribute to the submarine warfare capability development program of the Philippine Navy.”

Earlier, Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana signed a nonbinding agreement with France for defense and logistics cooperation, an agreement seen as putting the Philippine military a step closer toward acquiring the Scorpène-class diesel-electric submarine.

Meanwhile, the Navy will send two of its vessels to the Middle East to ferry Filipinos who would be repatriated from Iraq, Libya, Iran and other Middle Eastern states, which are experiencing volatility in their security as result of the death of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.

A send-off ceremony for the two ships was scheduled at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, with no less than President Duterte presiding over the event as disseminated by the Navy.

Empedrad said both ships are complimented by 130 crewmen each, and over a hundred members of medical team, SWAG (Special Warfare Group) personnel and repair men, who will form a task group.

“Based on the guidance of the President, the main mission is to bring back affected Filipinos from the Middle East,” Empedrad said.

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