PH Marines unveil 1st BrahMos anti-ship missile unit

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Sunday said the first unit to operate the BrahMos Shore-Based Anti-Ship Missile System was revealed during the 75th anniversary of the Philippine Marine Corps last Friday.

“The unveiling of the BrahMos Shore-Based Anti-Ship Missile System during the 75th anniversary of the Philippine Marine Corps marks a key milestone in the AFP’s modernization under Horizon 2,” AFP public affairs office chief Colonel Xerxes Trinidad told GMA News Online in a message.

“Acquired through a defense agreement with India in 2022, the system provides a supersonic, precision-strike capability to protect the nation’s maritime interests,” he added.

According to Trinidad, the BrahMos missile system will be operated by the Coastal Defense Regiment’s Shore-based Anti-ship Missile Battalion of the PMC.

The missile system was developed with BrahMos Aerospace and the Indian Armed Forces, he added.

“The milestone strengthens the Philippines’ deterrent posture and highlights its commitment to self-reliance and credible defense,” Trinidad said. 

According to BrahMos Aerospace, the missile has a 300 kilogram conventional warhead, has a speed of Mach 2.8 and has a range of 290 kilometers. 

In August this year, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. said Manila was in the process of procuring more BrahMos missiles.

''I've spoken to the officers and men who operate the BrahMos system and they say we need more, their experience of it, thank God it has never been used but from the demonstrations that they've seen, from the training that they received both in India and the Philippines, the practice runs that they've done, they seemed confident with the equipment,'' Marcos earlier said.

''I think we'll probably... we are in the process of actually procuring more,'' he added. 

In January 2022, the Duterte administration, through then-Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, signed a contract for the acquisition of a shore-based anti-ship missile system worth P18.9 billion.

The deal with BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between India and Russia, involves three batteries, training for operators and maintainers, as well as logistics support.

In April 2024, the Indian government confirmed that the first batch of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles was successfully delivered to the Philippines.  —Joviland Rita/RF, GMA Integrated News