Navy hits bull’s eye

The Philippine Navy (PN) reported yesterday the successful test firing of a Spike-ER (extended range) surface-to-surface missile off Lamao Point, Limay, Bataan.

The rockets system deployed in PN ships are manufactured by Rafael Advanced Defense Ltd.

Earlier, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana had hailed the test firing, saying in Filipino “we buy missiles without knowing how to use them or whether we will hit the targets with them.”

“So we brought them to Bataan and put a target at sea six kilometers away. They targeted it and we hit the bull’s eye,” he added.

PN flag-officer-in-command Admiral Robert Empedrad reported the weapon was fired from one of the PN’s three Spike-ER armed multi-purpose assault craft (MPAC).

The said assault craft was constructed by the Subic-based Propmech Corporation and activated on 22 May 2017.

The PN MPAC Acquisition Project entered into a contract with Rafael, through the Israel Ministry of Defense, for the supply and integration of the weapons systems to three Mark III MPAC.

On 15 April 2017, Lorenzana approved the notice to proceed with the project.

The Spike-ER system, which arrived in the country last April, is the PN’s first missile capable of penetrating 39 inches of rolled homogeneous armor, with a range of eight kilometers.

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