Philippines receives two Cyclone-class patrol vessels from the US

 

The Philippine Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Renato David receives a symbolic token representing the Cyclone-class ships. Photo c/o Philippine Navy.

The Philippine Navy has received two recently-decommissioned Cyclone-class patrol ships from the US Government.

This was confirmed by both the US Department of Defense and the Philippine Navy during the decommissioning ceremonies of the USS Monsson (PC-4) and USS Chinook (PC-9) in Naval Support Activity Bahrain on 26 March 2023.

The Philippine Navy’s Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Renato David led the Philippine Navy contingent in Bahrain to witness the decommissioning of the ships from the US Navy, and formally receive the ships. 

It was confirmed by the Philippine Navy that both ships are scheduled to arrive in the Philippines by May 2023, and will undergo a 60-day reactivation and maintenance works that will allow the Philippine Navy to configure the ships to their requirements and standards prior to commissioning and deployment to operational areas.

No information has been provided yet on when the ships are scheduled to be commissioned with the Philippine Navy, this could be sometime around July 2023.

The Philippine Navy is no stranger to the Cyclone-class, operating a single sistership, the former USS Cyclone (PC-1) since 2004. The service has been studying the acquisition of additional Cyclone-class patrol ships since the US Navy announced plans to retire the entire class, with plans to take in between two to five ships depending on availability and prevailing conditions of the ships.

The Cyclone-class patrol ships are 55 meters long, has a maximum width of 7.6 meters, and a displacement of around 335 tons. It is powered by four Paxman Valenta diesel engines allowing a range of 2,500 nautical miles at 12 knots, and a maximum speed of 35 knots.

They are armed with two Mk. 38 25mm autocannon, two Mk. 19 40mm automatic grenade launchers, two 12.7mm heavy machine guns, and two 7.62 machine guns. 

It can also be armed with a FIM-82 Stinger man-portable very short range air defense system, and are equipped with two Mk.60 quadruple launchers for the BGM-176 Griffin small surface-to-surface missiles. It was not confirmed if these missiles were removed prior to transferring the ships to the Philippine Navy.




[1] US Naval Forces Central Command
[2] MaxDefense Philippines
[3] PTV News