Philippines formalizes order for new fixed and mobile air surveillance radar systems

PAF personnel inspecting a J/FPS-3 radar site in Japan during project inspections in 2019. Photo c/o DND.

The Philippines Department of National Defense (DND) has formalized its order for new fixed and mobile air defense and surveillance radars from Japan.

Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana signed the contract with Mitsubishi Electric Corp. (MELCO) during ceremonies held on 14 August 2020 in Manila. The Notice to Proceed was also released in favor of MELCO on the same day.

The project is a milestone for Japan, as this is their first export of a complete defense system to another country since they lifted a ban to export arms and weapon systems in 2014.

MELCO was awarded the project in March 2020, beating offers from Israel and the United States.

The contract, worth US$103.5 million negotiated under a Government-to-Government deal between the two countries, involves the supply of three (3) J/FPS-3ME long range active electronically scanned array (AESA) fixed radar systems, and one (1) J/TPS-P14ME long range mobile radar system for the Philippine Air Force (PAF).

The PAF intends to deploy these new radars in the southern and northeastern seaboards of the country.

The project is part of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Horizon 2 moderization phase which covers 2018 to 2022. The radars will be delivered to the PAF starting 2022.

In addition to selling the radars to the Philippines, the Japanese government has also agreed to assist the PAF in improving its electronic warfare and communications capability, as well as improving its air defense system and doctrines.

Japan has also expressed its desire to work with its Philippine counterparts in monitoring Chinese military air traffic in the Bashi Channel, which is used by China for passage to the Western Pacific region.

 The new radars would be important in improving the Philippines' ability to detect aircraft entering the Philippine Air Defense Identification Zone (PADIZ) and airspace above its exclusive economic zone, considering it previously lacked sufficient capability due to dilapidation of its air defense system over the past few decades.


[1] Philippines Department of National Defense
[2] Japan Times
[3] Philippine Defense Resource