PH Navy’s 2nd brand new frigate passes sea trials in Korea

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Navy’s second brand new frigate, the future BRP Antonio Luna (FF-151), will be heading home soon after completing sea acceptance trials off the coast of Ulsan, South Korea.

The week-long trials involved warfare capability demonstrations for the 2,600-ton warship.

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The frigate, according to Rear Admiral Alberto Carlos, “is 95 percent complete at this time.”

Carlos, head of the Philippine Navy’s technical inspection and acceptance committee (TIAC), said “all machineries and combat systems were subjected to test procedures as stipulated in the contract.” These were “observed to be working properly,” he said.

He said that the ship passed prescribed standards and procedures.

Luna is the second and final ship being delivered by Hyundai Heavy Industries. Her sister-ship BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150) was commissioned into service last July.

The two ships, which would be the Navy’s first line of maritime defense in protecting the country’s vast territorial waters, have a price tag of P16 billion.

HHI earlier failed to officially provide the required Link 16 certification from the US for the combat management systems (CMS) prior to the delivery of BRP Jose Rizal. As a result, it offered to finance the ships’ expenses for the full integration of CMS to Link 16 should problems arise in the future.

READ: South Korean shipbuilder to bankroll integration of new PH warships’ combat systems with Link 16

The South Korean government provided a sovereign guarantee supporting the contractor’s guarantee to resolve the issue.

Luna will now undergo final outfitting and fine-tuning before delivery in February. The pandemic pushed back the target delivery, which was last October.

The seven-member TIAC team which traveled to South Korea for the sea acceptance tests followed COVID-19 protocols.

TSB