By ELENA L. ABEN
MANILA, Philippines — A top defense official said the Hamilton-class cutters of the Philippine Navy (PN) will get sophisticated radars and an anti-ship missile system to make the vessels more capable of engaging intruders to Philippine territorial waters.
According to the official, the BRP Gregorio Del Pilar and the soon-to-arrive BRP Ramon Alcaraz, will be equipped with Harpoon, an anti-ship missile system, and will also be fitted with more sophisticated radars capable of detecting and tracking incoming surface threats and anti-missile and torpedo decoying systems.
The official said the Harpoon is the ideal missile system for Del Pilar and Alcaraz, noting that a sister-ship of the vessels, the USCGC Mellon (WHEC-717), has been fitted with the Harpoon missile launchers and test fired the weapons in January, 1990. Both Del Pilar and Alcaraz were acquired from the United States Coast Guard (USCG).
Read the full story at The Manila Bulletin