2 more ageing PH Navy ships retiring soon

CAVITE CITY—The Philippine Navy will soon retire two more ageing ships as it strives to build a modern fleet.

Navy vice commander Rear Admiral Adelius Bordado said BRP Miguel Malvar (PS-19) and BRP Magat Salamat (PS-20) will be decommissioned this year.

Both ships were originally built for the US Navy in the 1940s but were acquired by the Philippines in the 1970s through Vietnam, where these were first reused.

On Monday (March 1), the Navy bade farewell to four of its old vessels—BRP Pangasinan (PS-31), BRP Quezon (PS-70), BRP Emilio Liwanag (PC-118) and BRP Salvador Abcede (PC-114).

The Navy paid tribute to the rich history of the ships and their crucial roles in securing the archipelago. BRP Pangasinan was commissioned in 1948 after being with the US Navy for four years.

BRP Quezon, meanwhile, joined the Navy in 1967, after serving the US Navy for 24 years. The two ships were extensively used in maritime patrols, humanitarian operations and other missions.

BRP Salvador Abcede and BRP Emilio Liwanag were former Chamsuri-class vessels of the Korean navy commissioned in the Philippine Navy in 1996 and 2011.

“An exciting part of this decommissioning ceremony is knowing that what we are doing now is to prepare,” said Bordado during a program at the naval base in Sangley Point.

“We are preparing and transitioning from a legacy navy to a modern navy,” he said. “Part of this is making sure that we allocate our resources and manpower to new platforms,” he added.

“This a symbolism that there is a new horizon in sight,” Bordado said. “We are geared towards to becoming a stronger and more capable Philippine Navy with a modern mindset, and with our newest acquisitions we are more confident we can better perform our mandate,” he said.

Replacement for the retired ships would start to arrive in the next several months. Deliveries of nine units of missile-armed fast attack interdiction vessels from Israel Shipyards worth P10 billion could begin in early 2022.

The Navy’s plans to acquire strategic sealift vessels, corvettes and offshore patrol vessels have yet to be funded.

Bordado said that while the Navy preferred to acquire brand new vessels, it was also open to acquiring second hand ships from friendly countries, but only as “transition” ships that would be in the service for only five to 10 years.

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