PH’s ‘most accomplished’ warship’s last mission: Missile target in sinking exercise

Former BRP Miguel Malvar before its decommissioning in 2021. PHOTO FROM BRP MIGUEL MALVAR PS-19 FACEBOOK PAGE

MANILA, Philippines — The decommissioned Philippine Navy warship BRP Miguel Malvar will serve as target of a flagship corvette’s anti-ship missile in her final mission.

The BRP Miguel Malvar saw action in the Second World War, Vietnam War, the Mindanao secession campaign and in the West Philippine Sea.

The former Miguel Malvar (PS-19) will be used as target of a South Korean-made guided-missile corvette, which will also be christened BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG-06), in the sinking exercise that would serve as the highlight of the coming war games between Manila and Washington next month.

The two corvettes were named after revolutionary general Miguel Malvar y Carpio, who was sometimes regarded as the rightful successor of President Emilio Aguinaldo, prompting lawmakers to push for his official recognition as the second chief executive of the Philippine republic.

“It will serve her final purpose to showcase that we have transitioned from a legacy Navy into a modern Navy,” said naval spokesperson Captain John Percie Alcos, who was also the last commander of PS-19, in an interview during the sidelines of a forum last week.

Corvette’s long history

The PS-19 served the navies of the United States and the erstwhile South Vietnam before being commissioned in the Philippines.

It was first commissioned under USS Brattleboro in 1944, when it conducted anti-submarine patrols as well as search and rescue operations during the Second World War.

She was then transferred to the former Republic of Vietnam in 1966, but later escaped to the Philippines after the Fall of Saigon in 1975.

“There’s a lot of history behind the BRP Miguel Malvar,” Alcos said, noting that it produced more than 20 flag officers including several flag-officers-in-command and a commandant of the Philippine Coast Guard.

“We were all sad,” Alcos said of his and the warship’s commanders’ sentiments. “But just like anything that has to do with progress, we have to let go of the past.”

The former PS-19 was decommissioned in 2021.

During her four-decade service to the country, the Miguel Malvar was deployed to conduct naval operations in the West Philippine Sea during the 2021 Whitsun Reef incident; in anti-terrorist operations in the provinces of Sulu and Tawi-tawi; and even during anti-communist insurgency operations in southern Luzon, according to Alcos.

Her final mission will be on May 5, when the maritime strike during “Balikatan” (shoulder to shoulder) exercises will be held in the West Philippine Sea, off the coastal town of San Antonio in Zambales province.

The PS-19 will be targeted by FFG-06 in her maiden mission since her arrival in the country last month.

READ: PH Navy receives first guided-missile corvette

“Allowing the new guided-missile corvette BRP Miguel Malvar to sink for the Balikatan allows our 19 foreign observer nations to believe that we are serious in our war games and that the Philippines is a reliable strategic partner,” said security expert Chester Cabalza in a message to INQUIRER.net.

“Simulating a well-rehearsed sinking of a World War-II era warship exercises their operational strategies in preparing our soldiers to foreseen and unforeseen eventuality,” Cabalza, president of Manila-based think tank International Development and Security Cooperation, added.

Shelter for fishes

PS-19 will likely become a habitat for marine life, just like the two other warships which were sunk during Balikatan’s maritime sinking exercises (SINKEX) in two previous iterations.

In 2023, former BRP Pangasinan sank off San Antonio, Zambales; while former BRP Lake Caliraya sank off Laoag City, Ilocos Norte in 2024.

READ: ‘Made in China’ target ship now a fish shelter after ‘Balikatan’ simulation

“Before a ship is used for a SINKEX, it generally undergoes rigorous preparation to remove hazardous materials, and is sunk in deep water far from land to avoid any risk of environmental impact,” maritime expert Ray Powell told INQUIRER.net in a message on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, noting that such activities were held in areas with no existing reef structures.

“Sunken vessels generally turn into marine life habitats,” Powell, director of SeaLight and program head of Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, also said.

But a group of fisherfolk on Wednesday remained concerned about the potential environmental damage and its toll to local fishers.

“Military live fire exercises disrupt the marine ecosystem and the livelihood of the local fisherfolk,” Ronnel Arambulo, Pamalakaya’s vice chairperson and senatorial candidate under the left-wing Makabayan coalition, said in a statement sent to INQUIRER.net.

Arambulo noted that a no-sail zone policy will be implemented in Aparri, Cagayan and Zambales.

“This will adversely affect the livelihood of tens of thousands of small fisherfolk,” he said. “It is unacceptable for the Filipino fisherfolk to halt their fishing livelihood for the Balikatan exercise.”

Provocative?

Arambulo added that the sinking exercise is provocative and may further escalate tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

Beijing asserts sovereignty in the entire South China Sea, including most of the West Philippine Sea, despite a 2016 international tribunal award which effectively invalidated such claims while ruling heavily in favor of Manila.

“We attest that these military exercises only escalate the Chinese presence in our territorial waters at the expense of the safety of Filipino fishers,” Arambulo said.

“While we need to garner support from the international community to pressure Beijing to respect our territorial rights, we should be wary against other superpowers that take advantage of the sea row to advance their geopolitical agenda,” he added.

Powell, however, said that: “China may choose to be provoked, but honestly what the Philippines chooses to do in its own waters should not concern Beijing.”