US and Philippine marines participate in a training exercise in the Masa 2002 in Ilocos Norte. (INQUIRE FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — The Marine Aviation Support Activity (Masa), the biggest joint exercise so far between the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC), will kick off on Thursday in ceremonies to be held in Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City.
The activity will involve over 2,700 troops — 1,257 Philippine marines with 115 reservists and 1,444 US marines, Capt. Jarald Rea, the PMC spokesperson, told reporters in a telephone interview on Wednesday.
“This is the biggest number of participants in the entire history of Masa,” Rea said.
Masa will be held from July 6 to 21 in Cagayan, Tarlac, Palawan, San Antonio, Zambales, and Cebu.
The Philippine Navy will deploy several ships – the corvette BRP Conrado Yap (PS-39), heavy landing craft BRP Waray (LC-288), littoral patrol vessel BRP Manuel Gomez (PC-388), and coastal patrol craft BRP Nestor Reinoso (PC-380).
The Naval Air Wing and the Philippine Air Force will also deploy some of their aircraft.
On the other hand, the USMC will deploy its own air assets during the exercise.