Philippines’ Corvette Diego Silang Launched In S. Korea

THE Philippine Navy’s (PN) 3,200-tonne guided-missile corvette, the BRP Diego Silang was launched at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ (HHI) naval shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea on March 27. Present at the ceremony were the Armed Forces of Philippines (AFP_ chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. and the Philippine Navy Chief Vice Admiral Jose Maria Ambrosio Quiatchon Ezpeleta along with senior officials from the Department of National Defense (DND) and HHI.

Taking the namesake of a Filipino revolutionary hero, the Diego Silang is the sister ship of the BRP Miguel Malvar which left South Korea earlier towards the Philippines, expected to arrive on April 8 at Subic. Both vessels are equipped with state-of-the-art armaments and sensors to be employed against surface, sub-surface and aerial targets. The ships were ordered in December 2021 in a US$483 million deal and reinforce the PN’s guided missile frigates BRP Jose Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna.

An AFP release stated, “These warships significantly enhance the country’s naval capabilities amid growing security challenges in the West Philippine Sea. The addition of these two 3,200-ton corvettes reinforces the Philippines’ commitment to regional stability and defence cooperation with South Korea.”-shpl/adj/dl (Pix:AFP,HHI)