Pitz Defense Analysis

Just recently, we reported the passage of the Liaoning Carrier Strike Group of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) through the Basilan Strait, near Zamboanga City, as it passed through the southern part of the country. The full picture was unveiled, with both the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard actively monitoring the carrier strike group, where the former deployed the BRP Diego Silang (FFG7) frigate first; it was then accompanied by BRP Emilio Jacinto under the Western Mindanao Naval Command, then the BRP Sarangani of the Philippine Coast Guard when it passed near Sarangani province, and then the BRP Artemio Ricarte when it passed into the jurisdiction of the Eastern Mindanao Naval Command. While the entire passage can be dismissed as basically an innocent passage under international law, plus the area near Basilan Strait being a valid maritime route under the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Law or RA 12065, the appearance of the Liaoning Carrier Strike Group is still a cause of concern worth monitoring at that time, given the increased tensions between the Philippines and China as of late. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineNavy #PhilippineCoastGuard #PLAN #PeoplesLiberationArmyNavy #BRPDiegoSilang #BRPArtemioRicarte #BRPEmilioJacinto #BRPSarangani Image (c) @Indowatchosint

Images: One of the Rajah Sulayman-class OPV and the BRP Conrado Yap (PS30) of the Philippine Navy, alongside Philippine Coast Guard's BRP Capones (MRRV-4404), took part on the 82nd Commemoration of the Battle of the Surigao Strait, which itself correlates to the larger Battle of the Leyte Gulf during the Second World War as part of the U.S. Liberation of the Philippines. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineNavy #PhilippineCoastGuard #BRPConradoYap #BRPCapones #RajahSulaymanClassOPV (C) RPN DXKS Surigao

Image: There were reports disclosed that the Liaoning Carrier Strike Group of the People's Liberation Army Navy got detected off the coast of Zamboanga City, near Basilan Strait. Apparently, it will be justifiable as the patch of water comes as part of the archipelagic sea lanes set by the Philippines, although this is still a cause of concern given the recent tensions between China and the Philippines. The Armed Forces of the Philippines was made aware of the situation, although its actions will not be disclosed, citing operational security reasons. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #LiaoningCSG #SuluSea

For the first time in the Philippine history, the exchange rate between US Dollar and the Philippine peso hit Php 63.361 per one dollar. This lowest exchange rate between the peso and the dollar will definitely have an effect to the entire modernization efforts of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, as they will find each acquisition projects more expensive now as funding it requires exchange rate considerations for it to function properly, as most of the military hardware bought by the military came from the overseas. Given this disparity, it will give a hard time for the defense planners into getting a project within the approved budget, as the price tag, usually quoted in dollars, might get unbearable especially when budget requests and procurement processes are done in peso. A stronger peso in this case might not happen soon, and it there is a high likelihood that the exchange rate might slip to US$1.00 = PHP 65.00 by the end of the year 2026. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineDefenseBudget Images originated from various sources. manilastandard.net/business/…

In a disappointing yet not surprising development, the modernization budget proposed by the Department of National Defense for the Revised AFP Modernization Program under Fiscal Year 2027 is at Php 134 billion, of which only Php 50 billion is approved under the National Expenditure Program or NEP. The budgetary concern is always a recurring problem for the department as it embarks on getting multi-billions worth of modernization projects, although their acquisition plans always run short, given the deficiencies highlighted by a small available allotment set aside for its modernization efforts. To take note, the 2027 budget through the current National Expenditure Program (NEP) does not have any available Unprogrammed Appropriations for the Revised AFP Modernization Program, which means that the amount provided will be the only one available for funding the ongoing transformation within the Philippine military. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineDefenseBudget #RevisedAFPModernizationProgram #DefenseBudget2027 First image from Senate PRIB, subsequent images referenced from various sources.

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The Philippine Coast Guard, together with the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Marine Corps, has successfully removed unauthorized fishing vessels that loiter inside the 12-nautical mile territorial waters off the coast of Kota Island in the West Philippine Sea. This comes as they said vessels were to conduct illegal fishing activities in the area, prompting Philippine authorities to conduct an appropriate course of action to repel the vessels and escort them outside the territorial waters of the island considered part of the Kalayaan Island Group. The actions conducted by the Philippine authorities highlight its mandate for protecting both the maritime domain and the biodiverse marine life that is within Kota Island, while maintaining an active presence in its operations within the Kalayaan Island Group and the West Philippine Sea at-large. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineCoastGuard #KotaIsland #WestPhilippineSea #KalayaanIslandGroup Image (c) Philippine Coast Guard abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026…

Official: The Philippine Navy has just renamed the BRP 'Ilocos Norte' into BRP 'Laoag City', corroborating previous reports presented on our social media channels. This come as a Philippine Coast Guard vessel already bears the name of BRP Ilocos Norte, which likely prompted the necessary change of the name on the Philippine Navy's third landing platform dock. Bearing LD603, Indonesian shipbuilder PT PAL aims to accomplish the construction of this ship before the year ends. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineNavy #PTPAL #BRPLaoagCity (C) @Andy_Febriandy, X (formerly Twitter)

Images: After 2 years of intensive maintenance and repairs, the sole ship BRP Conrado Yap (PS30) of the Pohang class corvettes bought from South Korea is seen mooring in Macabalan Port, Cagayan de Oro. This suggest that the vessel is now returning back to service after its two years of inactivity, and is now active and ready to serve the Philippine Navy's offshore combat force fleet. There are no details on its area of responsibility for its patrolling, the fact that it is now operational increases the availability of ships needed for deployment. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis #PhilippineNavy #BRPConradoYap #PohangClassCorvette Images from CDODev.Com Facebook page.

It is agreeable that the miniscule of a fleet size of ISR aircraft can only do too much for the Philippine Air Force to operate, something that China can exploit. But this also entails the risk of an escalatory move, which to be honest they already did under the gray zone form of tactics, but it is only a matter of time when the PLAAF will pull something akin to the 2001 incident where a Chinese military jet did hit a US PL-3 surveillance aircraft in the greater South China Sea area, resulting to a full standoff. This means that while China can disrupt or degrade ISR planes, it would do so by risking their aircraft and even an international incident based on a previous precedent already took place. #PDA #PitzDefAnalysis