Philippine Navy to buy Hamilton class patrol craft from the US

10.03.2011 Philippine Navy holds negotiations with US military authorities with a view to acquire the first of written-off Hamilton class USCG patrol crafts, reports Jane's Navy International.

US Coast Guard (USCG) is about to decommission four Hamilton class ships in 2011: USCGC Hamilton, USCGC Chase, USCGC Rush, and USCGC Jarvis. In prospect, those ships will be replaced with eight new Legend class patrol crafts; two of them have already been commissioned into US Coast Guard.

Hamilton class cutters were offered for sale and Philippine Navy sent a request, confirmed USCG. Officially, the delivery under Foreign Military Sales program will be formally declared in the nearest months. In case of positive decision, the 115-meter long ship will be the most powerful in Philippine Navy.

Philippines expect the ship to arrive at Manila in the first half of 2011. Supposedly, the ship will replace the flagship Rajah Humabon (American Cannon class patrol craft built in 1943).

USCGC Hamilton was launched in Dec 1965. Philippine Navy will have to arrange repair of the hull which had been in service for 44 years.

According to Philippine media, national navy intend to commission 7 ships in 2011: three littoral combat ships (possibly Hamilton class), three multipurpose attack crafts (MPAC), and a landing craft (LCU).

Each of new multipurpose attack crafts cost PHP 89 mln ($2.03 mln) and is a modified version of three 15-meter long landing cutters previously delivered by Propmech. In May 2009 those cutters joined Philippine Navy's special operations force.

In addition, Propmech takes part in a tender for the second parcel of MPAC. Acquiring of nine additional cutters is possible in prospect.

In March 2010 the company also won a PHP 178 mln ($4 mln) contract for delivery of a landing craft LCU in 2011.

Besides, there is a long-term project to purchase a multirole ship MRV used for transportation of troops, armor, and cargo; estimated cost of the project is PHP 5 bln. It was initially planned to finance the project till 2012. Previous Philippine leaders tied the MRV contract with South Korean company Daewoo Shipbuilding, but new government blocked the deal demanding an appropriate inquiry into circumstances of the contract conclusion.

MRV package includes Makasar class landing platform dock, two landing crafts LCU-23M, four armored amphibious vehicles KAAV (modification AAV-7) built by Samsung Techwin, four 9.8-meter rigid inflatable boats, mobile field hospital, ambulance car, six light trucks, and a forklift truck.