The Philippine Army has expressed interest in acquiring India’s BrahMos missile which is regarded as the world’s fastest supersonic missile.
This was revealed as Major Gen. Reynaldo Aquino, Army vice commander, toured the Indian Navy Ship Sahyadri which was docked at Pier 15 in South Harbor, Manila. Aquino was welcomed by the INS team led by Capt. Ashwin Arvind, commanding officer of Sahyadri.
One of the topics discussed by the two ranking officers was the Army’s possible acquisition of the BrahMos missile which can be launched from a ship, an aircraft, submarine, or by land.
“The Philippine Army is interested in acquiring this type of missile as it will strengthen our coastal defense operations,” said Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala, Army spokesperson.
According to BrahMos Aerospace, the BrahMos missile has a flight range of 290 kilometers with a supersonic speed all through the flight, thus, leading to shorter flight time and ensuring lower dispersion of targets, quicker engagement time, and non-interception by any known weapon system in the world.
If it pushes through, the acquisition would complement the Army’s activation of its 1st Land-based Missile System Battery last Oct. 3.
The 1LBMS Btry was placed under the supervision of the Army Artillery Regiment and is expected to augment the troops’ firepower in large-scale armed confrontation, and for internal defense and security engagements. (Martin Sadongdong)
