Personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), together with their counterparts from the United States Armed Forces, conducted a gunnery exercise 21 nautical miles off the coast of San Felipe, Zambales, where they performed live-fire maneuvers on Friday, April 25, as part of the ongoing Multilateral Maritime Event (MME) of Exercise Balikatan 40-2025 (BK 40-2025).
The drills served as a platform for the joint PH-US forces to refine naval surface warfare tactics, improve communication interoperability, and strengthen maritime domain awareness in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
They involved live-firing of .50 caliber machine guns, participated in by the Philippine Navy vessels BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS16) and BRP Conrado Yap (PS36), the Philippine Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Vessel BRP Gabriela Silang (OPV 8301), and the USS Savannah (LCS 28) and USS Comstock (LSD 45) from the USAF.
Meanwhile, personnel of BRP Jose Rizal (FF150) also conducted a fire drill, first aid response, and casualty evacuation exercise, with the aim of enhancing the crew’s readiness and coordination in responding to onboard emergencies.
The drills focused on fire suppression, immediate medical response, and safe evacuation procedures in order to respond to various maritime emergencies.
BK 40-2025, the largest joint military exercise between Philippine and US troops, started last April 21 with a series of activities being held in different provinces and will last until May 5.
Troops from the Australian military and Japan Self-Defense Force are participating in some exercises, while 18 other nations have also joined as observers of the exercises.
