Wescom reports more WPS maritime, air patrols

From the Philippine News Agency (Apr 13, 2023): Wescom reports more WPS maritime, air patrols (By Priam Nepomuceno)

MANILA – The Western Command (Wescom) on Thursday reported a significant increase in its maritime and aerial patrols in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) for the first quarter of this year.

"The AFP Wescom reports a substantial increase in its operational tempo, or optempo, in the WPS for the first quarter of CY2023. This means that more government ships are staying out at sea for longer periods of time and government aircraft flights over WPS have become more frequent," Wescom chief, Vice Adm. Alberto Carlos, said in a statement.

The boost in Wescom's patrol efforts came in wake of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s announcement that not a square inch of Philippine territory will be lost under his watch.

"Together with our partner agencies - the Philippine Coast Guard, the Philippine National Police Maritime Group and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the Philippine Navy established a strong maritime presence in the area with the sustained deployments of their respective ships in WPS, especially at the vicinity of Pagasa Island," he added.

These efforts are meant to counter the increased presence of suspected foreign militia vessels in the area, the Wescom chief stressed.

Wescom also increased the frequency of maritime air patrols to closely monitor the activities of foreign vessels in the WPS and the developments on foreign occupied features in the area.

"Good weather and the availability of surveillance aircraft from the Philippine Air Force and our partner agencies allowed Wescom to have a comprehensive, accurate, and timely maritime domain awareness picture in the WPS," he added.

Carlos estimates that the increased optempo (operations tempo) is about 50 percent above 2022 figures.

"We will try very hard to sustain our first quarter optempo for the rest of the year.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1199330