ILOCOS NORTE, Philippines — The U.S. Army Pacific’s 1st Multi-Domain Task Force and the Philippine Army Artillery Regiment have test-fired a Tomahawk cruise missile from the Typhon launcher in the central Philippines — and it successfully hit a target 995 kilometers away in Nueva Ecija.
Col. Dennis Hernandez of the Philippine Marines told Defense News the cruise missile was launched at around 12:20 a.m local time on May 5 and landed at the impact area within Fort Magsaysay, the Army’s main battle camp, in Laur, Nueva Ecija, 61 minutes later.
“The missile was very precise. Let’s say if you want to hit a window from a far distance, it lands directly into that window,” Hernandez said. “This skimming missile traveled all the way from Tacloban to the target in Laur.”
Exercise officials meant for the Tomahawk missile to support ground troops in a night land maneuver exercise led by the 25th Infantry Division in Fort Magsaysay, part of the ongoing Balikatan annual joint drills between American and Filipino troops.
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This year’s Balikatan drill involves roughly 17,000 troops from Japan, Australia, France, Canada and New Zealand.
The Typhon launcher’s presence in the Philippines, let alone a test-firing of one of its variable munitions, has irked Chinese officials because of its long-range capability, especially when loaded with Tomahawks.
Philippine officials said training on the Typhon missile system will help guide future acquisitions.
There was some back-and-forth earlier in the exercise about whether the Typhon launch would happen at all. Local defense officials initially announced it for May 4 or May 5, but U.S. military officials suggested it could be canceled because of unspecified “obstacles.”
In the end, the launch was timed ahead of a joint maritime strike in Ilocos Norte, according to exercise planners. That event will feature the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s Type 88 anti-ship missile system and the U.S. Marine Corps’ NMESIS weapon, a mobile, shore-based missile launcher designed to sink ships.
An April 27 navigational warning issued by the Philippine Coast Guard in Eastern Visayas, where Tacloban City is located, urged locals to take precautionary measures from May 5 until May 7 due to activities in the waters off San Pedro Bay during the Balikatan exercises.
Later, another notice was issued to warn residents of a missile-related activity involving the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile system (TLAM).
“Using the Tomahawk was planned — but it depended on the scenario on the ground. There’s a control group that controls the scenario and the exercise and if it is needed, then it is fired,” Hernandez explained.
“It just so happened that the scenario last night required using the Tomahawk to support ground troops,” he added.
Gordon Arthur contributed to this report.
Leilani Chavez is an Asia correspondent for Defense News. Her reporting expertise is in East Asian politics, development projects, environmental issues and security.
