Newest Philippine Navy Ship Gets Aloha Welcome

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SW) Mark Logico
Commander Navy Region Hawaii Public Affairs, Thursday, July 28, 2011

PEARL HARBOR (Jul. 27, 2011) - Members of the Hawaii Filipino community welcome Philippine navy Capt. Alberto Cruz, commanding officer of the Philippine navy frigate BRP Gregorio del Pilar which arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam for a scheduled port visit. (U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Mark Logico)

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - More than a hundred Filipino-Americans and other well-wishers welcomed the Philippine Navy's newest ship, BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF-15), as it arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH), July 27 for a brief port visit.

Commanded by Capt. Alberto A. Cruz, Gregorio del Pilar left Alameda, Calif. on July 18 to make its maiden voyage to the Republic of the Philippines where it will join the Philippine Fleet. Gregorio del Pilar is a former U.S. Coast Guard cutter, USCGC Hamilton (WHEC 715). As a multi-mission surface combatant ship, it becomes the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in the Philippine Navy Fleet.

"This is very historic moment," said Col. Restituto Padilla, the Filipino military liaison assigned at U.S. Pacific Command. "That's why we have the Filipino community here in force. This is the first time a Philippine Navy ship pulls into historic Pearl Harbor. Coupled with that, this is the first Philippine Navy ship that is gas-turbine. In these two instances, they are milestones. I hope this will be followed through by many more ship visits to historic Pearl Harbor in the months and years to come."

Navy Region Hawaii Command Master Chief Marc Sibal rallied the Filipino-American community in Hawaii to the JBPHH piers to greet the ship. Members of the U.S. Air Force, Army, Marines and Coast Guard also attended the event.

"I feel proud, very proud of it," said Sibal. "Even if I'm serving in the U.S. Navy, I'm still Filipino by culture and by heart. It's nice to see the Philippine Navy modernize their fleet. We are very uplifted, and I think everybody is very honored to have this ship pull into Pearl Harbor, to a historic place like Pearl Harbor."

Sibal, who previously served as Seventh Fleet Command Master Chief, said that the relationship between the U.S. and the Republic of the Philippines remains strong and that the ship is an example of the well-built relationship between the two countries.

Prior to taking command of the ship, 74 members of the Philippine Navy underwent two months of intensive hands-on training aboard USCGC Boutwell (WHEC 719), the sister ship of the Hamilton. While aboard Boutwell, the crew traveled to Colombia, Ecuador and El Salvador, participating in multiple missions including the interdiction of drug smugglers.

"Our partnership with the United States has been here for so many years," said Padilla. "It's getting stronger through the years. I hope this will mark a new era, as we embrace new challenges. As new security environments emerge, our partnership with the United States would get even stronger and become more relevant in the years to come."

Deputy Consul General Paul Cortes, of the Philippine Consulate in Honolulu; Capt. Jeffrey James, commander of JBPHH; and Capt. William Johnson, commanding officer of USS Lake Erie (CG 70), host ship during the port visit, were also at the pier to welcome the ship.

During the three-day port visit, Gregorio del Pilar will take on supplies and fuel, hold a reception hosted by the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu and the Philippine Celebrations Coordinating Committee of Hawaii (PCCCH), and visit the USS Arizona Memorial. A social media "tweetup" is being planned during the ship's visit. A Catholic Mass will be conducted prior to their departure.

Gregorio del Pilar and USS Reuben James (FFG 57) are scheduled to conduct a Passing Exercise (PASSEX) off the coast of Hawaii next week. PASSEX is an exercise designed to increase interoperability between the two navies, while enhancing the strong cooperative relationship.

United States Pacific Command

On board the BRP Gregorio del Pilar

By Rodel Rodis

Inquirer, Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Philippines has only a WW II vintage frigate, the Rajah Humabon, to use right now to defend the country against an attack from China’s formidable armada which includes an aircraft carrier, 21 destroyers, 68 submarines, 42 modern frigates and 760 ships. But help is on the way. In three weeks, the 378-foot Hamilton-class cutter BRP Gregorio Del Pilar will arrive in the Philippines where it will be dispatched to the Kalayaan Island Group of the Spratly Islands to defend this “Tirad Pass” from foreign invaders.

Imagine the Philippine David with its cutter slingshot against the China Goliath.

The BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the biggest ship ever to be acquired by the Philippine Navy, will be manned by a full complement of 180 officers and crew, 95 of whom were recently trained in the San Francisco Bay Area at Coast Guard Island in Alameda.

Before it was purchased by the Philippine government from the US for $13 million this May, the cutter, which was built in 1968, was largely used by the US Coast Guard for drug and migrant interdiction, law enforcement and defense readiness. As a multi-mission Surface Combatant Ship (SCS), the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in its fleet, the Philippine Navy plans to deploy it for operations in the West Philippine Sea.

On the eve of the ship’s departure for the Philippines from its Alameda base this July 17, I attended a Mass officiated on the ship by Fr. Mark Reburiano. Before Holy Communion was served, Philippine Navy Flag Officer in Command Vice Admiral Alexander Pama spoke to thank the members of the Filipino American community.

“You warmly welcomed them in your homes, you fed them and you made them feel at home” he said. “We want you all to be proud of our Philippine Navy which represents not only the Filipino people but Filipinos everywhere.”

“We may face insurmountable odds when we return to the Philippines,” he added, “but at the end of the day, it is people who are the decisive factors in any conflict and I want you all to know that we have people of outstanding quality in our navy.”

After the Mass, we joined the officers and crew at the ship’s mess hall for their final dinner in the United States. We watched the video of the May 13, 2011 turnover ceremonies attended by Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr. and US Coast Guard Vice Admiral Manson K. Brown.

The highlight of the turnover rites was the departure of the US Coast Guard crew from the ship as the US flag was lowered and the raising of the Philippine flag on the ship as 21 members of the Philippine Navy, who had been in training in the US since February 25, 2011, boarded the ship to take command.

On the following day, 74 additional members of the Philippine Navy arrived to undergo training on the Philippine Navy’s newest ship.

The BRP Gregorio Del Pilar crew includes three female officers: Dr. Joanne Cornista, the Chief Medical officer; Ensign Lolit Gonzales; and Lt. Junior Grade Andrelee Mojica, the Damage Control Officer who happens to be the first female valedictorian of the Philippine Military Academy (Class of 2007).

At the helm of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar is Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, (PMA Class of 1988) who along with his Executive Officer, Navy Commander Reynaldo Lopez (PMA Class of 1992) arrived in Alameda on February 25, 2011 together with a specially selected crew of 19 other officers and enlisted men/engineers (the “crème de la crème”) of the Philippine Navy.

They underwent intensive hands-on training on board the USCGC Boutwell, the sister ship of the USCGC Hamilton, for two months traveling to Colombia, Ecuador and El Salvador to interdict drug smugglers. With no access to the telephone or the Internet, the crew later told reporter Gemma Nemenzo, they felt like “the lost command”. Worse torture for some of them—the steady diet of potatoes, meat, potatoes and more potatoes. No rice.

At our dinner at the Officers’ Mess Hall on July 17, I sat down with Vice-Admiral Pama who had flown in from Manila just the day before to formally issue the orders to Capt. Cruz. He candidly expressed relief that the Philippine Navy was finally getting attention from the national government after years of neglect.

We recalled Pres. Noynoy Aquino’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 26, 2010 when he said: “We have 36,000 nautical miles of shoreline, but we only have 32 boats. These boats are as old as the time of (US General Douglas) MacArthur.”

While Pres. PNoy Aquino has been hammered by his critics for lack of accomplishments during his first year in office, PNoy quietly found the government funds to purchase the Hamilton cutter from the US government and is negotiating to acquire even more de-commissioned cutters.

Vice-Admiral Pama shared that the decision to name the BRP Gregorio Del Pilar was no fluke. Philippine Navy officers were keenly aware of the heroic exploits of the “Boy General” who led his Filipino soldiers to victory in the Battle of Quingua on April 23, 1899 against the US forces of Col. John Stotsenburg. With the US forces breathing down on Philippine President Emilo Aguinaldo’s trail, Gen. Del Pilar and 60 Filipino soldiers defended Tirad Pass for five hours against the vastly superior 33rd Infantry Regiment led by Gen. Peyton March before he and his men were killed by the foreign invaders.

On Monday, July 18, we attended the send-off ceremonies at Alameda as Vice Admiral Pama officially issued the order to Capt. Cruz to depart for the Philippines. I then joined the Filipino-American community in shaking the hands of each of the 95 officers and crew of the BRP del Pilar to wish them each Godspeed. As I shook their hands and looked in their eyes, I worried that they may be the first casualties of a war with China over the Spratlys.

The Filipino American community has scheduled a national Day of Prayer for Peace in the Spratlys for Sunday, August 21, the 28th anniversary of Ninoy Aquino’s assassination, to pray for the peaceful and just resolution of our territorial conflict with China and for the protection and safety of the brave men and women of the BRP Gregorio Del Pilar.

globalnation.inquirer.net

Navy’s fastest ship sails to new homeport

By Gemma Nemenzo

NewsBreak, Wednesday, July 20, 2011

CALIFORNIA—“Requesting permission, sir, to carry out the mission to return to the Philippines.”

As the BRP Gregorio del Pilar leaves the US Coast Guard dock in Alameda, California, the crew unfurls a banner.

Philippine Navy Captain Alberto Cruz uttered these all-important words softly, almost privately—away from the chatter of supporters and onlookers—to the Flag Officer in Command (FOIC) of the Navy, Vice Admiral Alexander Pama, at around 1530 hours on July 18 in Alameda, California.

With permission granted, Cruz then boarded the BRP Gregorio del Pilar to steer the new crown jewel of the Philippine Navy on her journey of approximately a month to her new homeport.

Earlier, the rituals of departure that naval tradition calls for whenever a ship is deployed on an important mission were conducted by the ship’s 95-person crew, leaving the crowd of about a hundred supporters tearful.

The emotion of the moment was not lost on the ex-Philippine Navy officers present (all of them alumni of the Philippine Military Academy, where Pama, Cruz and the other top officers of the BRP GdP also graduated from) as they remembered their years aboard the rickety ships of the Navy and watched with a large amount of pride this big new ship the likes of which they could only dream about when they were in active service.

It took more than an hour before the former Hamilton class cutter was actually able to leave port. A minor propeller problem had to be repaired before the U.S. Coast Guard tugboat could steer it out of the dock. When she finally sailed, the dwindled crowd of wellwishers cheered and waved tiny Philippine flags as the crew unfurled a hastily made banner that said, “Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat.”

Pama, recording the departure on both his cell phone and tablet computer, was visibly proud as he watched the 92 men and three women under his command sail away. Earlier, in a moment of nostalgia for his days aboard ship, he had wished that he was on board with them.

Fastest, biggest

The BRP Gregorio del Pilar is the first of three major vessels the Philippine Navy will acquire “hopefully by the end of the year,” according to Pama.

Funding for the acquisitions—part of the military modernization plans of the Aquino administration—will come from the Department of Energy’s six billion-peso allotment for oil exploration and coastal protection.

It will not be the first time this particular ship – the WHEC-715 – will dock in the Philippines.

On her initial deployment in 1969, she sailed from Panama to Subic Naval Base, where she docked for four days before proceeding to South Vietnam to carry out the mission of preventing weapons smuggling from North Vietnam at the height of the war.

After her wartime mission, the 715 was used by the US Coast Guard for anti-drug smuggling duties and rescue operations in various countries until her final decommissioning last March.

The Philippine government bought the Hamilton class cutter early this year for approximately US$13 million (Php450 million) under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program.

Once the largest ship of the American Coast Guard, this is the first gas-turbine jet engine-powered vessel in the Philippine Navy fleet, making it the fastest, biggest and most powerful among the service’s aging inventory.

She is described as “a high endurance cutter with close-in weapons system” and features a helicopter flight deck with a retractable hangar, with capabilities for rescue operations and maritime law enforcement.

At the helm of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar is Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of ’88.

Elite Crew

Philippine Navy Captain Alberto Cruz, the author, and Vice Admiral Alex Pama. After this photo was napped, Cruz turned to Pama to ask permission to sail.

Not an easy task considering that this is the first time he and his crew will traverse this lengthy route, and the first time they will navigate this ship with her unfamiliar technology for an extended period in the open sea without the assistance and know-how of its former American crew.

An amiable, soft-spoken guy whose easy-going style belies years of experience in commanding naval ships and people, his all-important mission is to deliver this very valuable vessel across the Pacific to the Philippine waters safe and intact.

To top it all, they will be arriving in the Philippines right smack into typhoon season.

But if there’s any group up to the challenge, it’s this crew of naval officers and sailors who have been handpicked by the Philippine Fleet Command (a special committee of top naval officials) based on their exemplary service and experience.

“It’s safe to say that this crew, from the Commanding Officer down to the lowest ranking enlisted man, is the ‘crème de la crème’ of the Philippine Navy,” retired Philippine Navy Captain Archie Almario says.

“You don’t send someone with a checkered service record to an international mission as important as this. This [assignment] is both a recognition of their talents and a reward for their good work.”

Cruz and the seven other naval officers and 13 enlisted men/engineers that formed the initial group that trained with the Hamilton command were assigned in various naval ships stationed in different areas of the archipelago when they got the call from their superiors last January. Report to [the Philippine Navy headquarters] Manila for a new assignment was the missive. There they were told of the government’s acquisition and the role they would play in the process.

As commanding officer, Cruz had his complete crew already chosen for him. Among the seven are the executive officer Navy Commander Reynaldo Lopez (PMA Class 1992) and Lieutenant Junior Grade Andrelee Mojica (the valedictorian of PMA Class of 2007), the damage control officer, who is one of three women officers on the ship.

‘Lost command’

The first weeks of their new assignment were a whirlwind of activities for the chosen 21.

All underwent rigorous physical exams and intensive neuro-psychiatric evaluations (NPE), the latter crucial in determining whether each person had the mental and psychological capacity to withstand the challenge of being away from their families for an indeterminate period, the stability to face up to the pressure-cooker demands of a new environment in a different country, and the rigor to learn new technologies and procedures within a relatively short period of time.

Cruz credits the NPE evaluation for the relatively problem-free dynamic that currently governs the quality of interaction among the ship’s crew. “We had met each other before [this mission], but only casually,” the commanding officer says. “But somehow we bonded immediately.”

On February 25 this year, the group landed in San Francisco and were immediately whisked to Alameda (about 20 minutes away) to board the USCGC Boutwell, the sister ship of the Hamilton, for hands-on training.

What they didn’t anticipate was that they would be cut off from all communications with the outside world for two full months as the Boutwell crew carried out a highly classified US Coast Guard anti-drug smuggling operation that brought the vessel to as far as Ecuador and El Salvador.

With no telephone or Internet access, the Filipino navymen on board joked among themselves that they had become a “lost command.” Worse, they had to endure meals without rice for weeks on end, which as we know, is tantamount to torture for Filipinos from the Philippines.

“We had salad, potatoes, meat, potatoes and potatoes,” one of them remarked. No wonder they had to go through the NPEs. They were only allowed to check in with their families when the tsunami in Japan happened.

A US Coast Guard tugboat begins to steer the BRP Gregorio del Pilar out of US waters to proceed to the Philippines.

When the Boutwell returned to San Diego, the Hamilton cutter was ready to sail for Alameda for the formal turnover to the Philippine government. Cruz and his crew were given permission to ride with the ship to her new destination, but as passengers, since training on the actual vessel (already named Ex Hamilton after its decommissioning) would start only after the May 13 ceremony.

Gregorio del Pilar

With the Hamilton rechristened Gregorio del Pilar, Cruz took command of the vessel.

The rest of the crew were flown in from the Philippines to work alongside their American counterparts. By then, the original 21 have had enough experience with gas turbine engine technology to be confident that they would be able to get the ship to sail.

For a journey across the Pacific, however, more weeks of intense training were required.

Finally, in early July, they did a four-day run at sea along the coast of California for a test of the crew’s capabilities and the ship’s sea-worthiness. After that, the American trainors de-boarded and the Filipino naval officers and men were on their own.

As soon as she reaches her new homeport, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar will undergo some refurbishing before deployment to the Spratlys.

When confronted with the usual saber-rattling by powerful nations during territorial disputes, the Philippines now has a gleaming big saber to brandish in return.—Newsbreak

www.newsbreak.ph

By Jaime Laude

Philippine Star, Monday, July 18, 2011

By Jaime Laude - The Philippine Navy’s newly acquired cutter from the United States (US) Coast Guard is arriving in the country in three weeks’ time and after some refinements will be immediately deployed to secure the country’s territorial waters in the West Philippine Sea, Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said yesterday.

Pama flew to California yesterday in time for tomorrow’s sendoff of BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF-15) for a long voyage home, with stopovers in Hawaii and Guam for replenishment.

“The sendoff will signal the last activities for BRP Gregorio del Pilar in the US and to start its journey to the Philippines,” Pama said.

He said Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia Jr., US Coast Guard Pacific Area and Defense Force West commander Vice Admiral Manson Brown and Philippine defense and Armed Forces attaché to the US Navy Capt. Antonio Habulan Jr. will be around during the official sendoff ceremony.

Aside from the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the government is also shopping for additional military assets in the US in line with the capability upgrade program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), to be used for its territorial defense amid the increasing tension in the West Philippine Sea brought about overlapping claims over the Spratlys.

A former USCG cutter, the Hamilton Class vessel, which is also classified as Weather High Endurance Cutter (WHEC), will first undergo refinements in its weapon and electronic systems upon its arrival before its deployment for maritime security operations in Palawan.

To accommodate the newly acquired PF-15, Pama said the Navy is putting up a naval base in Hulugan Bay fronting the West Philippine Sea, which will serve at the vessel’s homeport.

The scheduled deployment of PF-15 in the West Philippine Sea is expected to further boost the Navy’s platform in the hotly contested region to include maritime security operations for the Malampaya project west of Palawan.

“The Philippine Navy intends to use this multi-mission vessel for operations such as maritime security patrols and search and rescue. But more importantly, it will be deployed to aid in the maritime security of the Malampaya project,” Pama said.

While PF-15 is classified as a WHEC in the US, the Philippine Navy has refitted and refurbished it as a surface combatant ship with a type code of “P” for patrol and is further classified as a frigate with a type code of “F,” hence the designation of “PF.”

The vessel is powered by combined diesel engines and gas turbines and is equipped with a helicopter flight deck, a retractable hangar, and facilities to support helicopter operations.

With a total length of 378 feet, 42 inches beam, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar will be the Navy’s flagship.

www.philstar.com