Leading shipbuilding and repair company Israel Shipyards said Wednesday that it won a tender to supply Philippine Navy with its Shaldag MK V vessel. The agreement ‒ which was signed by Israel Shipyards, the Israeli Ministry of Defense, and the customer includes a knowledge transfer and training regarding the construction and maintenance of the 32.65 m-long vessels, as well an upgrade of the customer’s shipyard for this purpose. Israel Shipyards will also conduct training at the customer’s facility regarding construction and maintenance of the Shaldag MK V.
The Philippine Navy capability to defend the country’s key sea lines of communications (SLOCs) such as Mindoro, Balabac, Sibutu, and Basilan Straits against conventional threats will get a boost with the forthcoming arrival of fast-attack interdictor craft missile (FAIC-M) boats it has acquired. The Philippine Navy chief, Vice Adm. Giovanni Carlo Bacordo made this remark as he confirmed that the three of a total of eight fast-attack interdictor craft missile (FAIC-M) boats it has acquired are scheduled to be delivered in the first quarter of 2022.
The Shaldag MK V will be deployed initially in the Mindanao AORs (area-of-responsibility) where there is continuous operations against LTGs (local terrorist groups) and CTGs (communist terrorist groups). The project, which consists of two lots, is worth around PHP10 billion. Lot 1 consists of the acquisition of the naval platforms and the upgrade of the Cavite Naval Shipyard while Lot 2 is focused on the acquisition of the weapons system of these FAIC-Ms which include remotely-controlled gun and missile systems.
The Shaldag Mark V is a combat-proven, all-aluminum, light, and fast vessel with high payload capacity. The FAIC-Ms is expected to replace the force of patrol killer medium (PKM) or medium-sized patrol craft. Four of the FAIC-Ms will be armed with Spike NLOS missiles with pinpoint accuracy and a range of 25 kilometers while the other four will be armed with machine guns and light automatic cannons.These boats can interdict surface threats and launch non-line-of-sight (NLOS) missiles safely using the surrounding littoral areas as maneuver space and cover.
