It is not a question of why, but when. These pronouncements are only reiteration of years-old plan to replace all the
aged assets. The most recent was two year ago.
Navy to decommission 10 aging vessels
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“We are looking at about five to 10 vessels that we have to decommission as soon as the new vessels arrive,” assistant chief of naval staff for logistics Capt. Alberto Carlos said in a recent interview.
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Navy spokesman Col. Edgard Arevalo said the average age of the ships in their inventory is more than 30 years old.
“We really badly need additional new and better assets and better ships. We are still using ships that were used during the Vietnam War,” he added.
Since 2014, the Navy had received five (5) ex-Balikpapan LCH, one of the three ex-PNOC tankers- BRP Lake Caliraya AF81, BRP Tarlac LD601 (Landing Platform Dock), BRP Gregorio Velasquez AGR702/Research ship, and now BRP Andres Bonifacio FF17. However, in May this year, patrol boats -- BRP Hen. Antonio Luna PG141 and BRP Apollo Tiano PG851, were decommissioned.
The expected delivery of the second amphibious dock, BRP Davao del Sur -- might finally put to rest one or even both of the remaining WW-II LST. Meanwhile -- the arrival of BRP Bonifacio can only be related to BRP Humabon (FF11), and to some extent the two Auk MSF - BRP Rizal and BRP Quezon.
Their exist an actual clause on the original 1995 AFP Modernization Law that the
acquisition and retirement of uneconomical and obsolete major equipment and weapons system shall be synchronized. However, this didn't prevent the retirement of the F-5A/B fighters; and took almost-a-decade of planning and selection before a direct replacement were delivered.
There are a number of infographics and paper plans to directly replace the vintage ships, including the last six Malvar Class PCEs. But PN does understand the value of these PCEs, and had been keeping them in good conditions. And not until actual hulls replaces them on station, my presumption is that these will be the last units to go among the ex-WWII ships.
