MaxDefense Philippines

04/04/2026

In addition to the 117 units of Isuzu NPS 4x4 light troop carrier trucks, Isuzu Philippines Corp. and F. Cura Industries also delivered 88 units of the larger Isuzu FTS trucks to the Philippine Army last 31 March 2026,

These are the same trucks that MaxDefense Philippines featured last year.

It turns out that the photos we have last year were stock Isuzu FTS trucks that will still undergo further preparation before being delivered to the Philippine Army.

While the Isuzu FTS was categorized as a medium troop carrier truck during acquisition by the Philippine Army, it actually has a larger off-road payload capacity than the Philippine Army's existing 2.5-ton rated troop carrier trucks like the South Korean Kia KM250 and the American AM General M35 6x6 trucks and is actually closer to the Kia KM500 and the AM General M929, as it is said to have a rating of at least 6-ton capacity in off-road conditions.

Photo credits to Isuzu Philippines Corp.

03/04/2026

The Department of Budget has released a new SARO for the 5th milestone payment for the Riverine Operations Equipment Acquisition Project of the Philippine Army.

The project, which was acquired through the US Department of War using US Foreign Military Sales Program, involves delivery of riverine boats and corresponding weapons and other gear for the Philippine Army's Riverine unit under the Special Forces Regiment.

We have updated our resource page on this project including the photos we posted a few days ago:
https://www.phdefresource.com/2020/08/riverine-operations-equipment.html

The Philippine Army (PA) has started to improve and modernize its riverine capabilities, which is among their existing capabilities that are not well known to the general public.As part of the Revised AFP Modernization Program's Horizon 2 Phase, the Philippine Army has included the acquisition of Ri...

02/04/2026

So far this is good news and a win for the Marcos Administration, but it remains to be seen if this agreement will hold, and we'll wait for the first ships to arrive in Philippine ports.

Iran guarantees safe, unhindered passage for Philippine-flagged vessels and Filipino seafarers in the Strait of Hormuz after high-level diplomatic talks.

01/04/2026

As part of efforts to strengthen the Philippines' claims to features in the West Philippine Sea, particularly in the Kalayaan Island Group, Pres. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order 111 on adapting Philippine names for 131 features as part of the Municipality of Kalayaan, Palawan Province.

The list of names in English and Filipino are shown on the photos below.

01/04/2026

The Philippine Army formally received 117 new Isuzu NPS 4x4 light troop carrier trucks from Isuzu Philippines Corporation, which were acquired under the ORD-PABAC2-042-24 Trucks Troop Carrier, Light (Militarized) Acquisition Project.

The project, which was funded under the Philippine Army's GAA Capital Outlay for FY2024, was awarded to truck modification specialist F. Cura Industries, which in turn selected the Isuzu NPS truck as its platform.

As the Isuzu NPS is said to be assembled in the Philippines and work on the accessories was done in the Philippines, it can be considered part of the Self Reliant Defense Posture (SRDP) Program.

Our resource page for the project can be accessed on the link below:
https://phdefenseresource.blogspot.com/2026/04/ord-pabac2-042-24-truck-troop-carrier.html

 The Philippine Army has raised a requirement for 117 light militarized troop carrier trucks as part of increased motorization efforts.This resource page focuses specifically on the ORD-PABAC2-042-24 Truck, Troop Carrier Light (Militarized) Acquisition Project of the Philippine Army.One of the Isuz...

30/03/2026

A recent article from The National Interest pointed that the Philippines could be a potential recipient of recently retired Asagiri-class destroyers from Japan, reinforcing Japanese-sourced reports from last year that the Philippines could be interested in the later variants of the class which are modernized.

According to the article, the ships are far from being antiquated despite being retired from serving the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force and could easily find a new home with an allied navy somewhere in Asia, especially those whose defense and security policies align with those of Japan.

Since Japan already indicated its intentions to transfer the smaller Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippines, it would not be difficult for Japan to do the same for the larger and more sophisticated Asagiri-class destroyers.

30/03/2026

The Philippine Air Force formally accepted and inducted its second FPS-3ME fixed radar site on 23 March 2026.

The radar site was handed over by the Government of Japan and Mitsubhish Electric Corporation to the Philippine Air Force through its Commanding General Lt. Gen. Arthur Cordura. The radar system was then turned over to the 580th Aircraft Control and Warning Wing through its Commander, Brig. Gen. Vicente Naldoza Jr.

White it was not mentioned where the site is, we previously posted photos of a newly-contructed radar building at Elum Air Station in Zamboanga City as of 2025, which is poised to receive the new FPS-3ME radar.

Mitsubishi Electric has so far handed over 3 radar systems to the PAF, with two FPS-3ME fixed radars in December 2023 and March 2026, and a J/TPS-P14ME mobile radar system on April 2024.

More on this project from our resource page below:
https://www.phdefresource.com/2020/01/air-surveillance-radar-phase-2.html

Photo credits to Embassy of Japan in the Philippines and Philippine Air Force.

and/or

30/03/2026

Photos of a destroyed US Air Force Boeing E-3G Sentry Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft have been released online, said to be hit by an Iranian drone strike at the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.

US Central Command is yet to say something about this, although there is no denying that an E-3 Sentry was indeed destroyed regardless of any circumstance.

The USAF only has 16 operational E-3s as of 2025, and losing one is a huge blow considering American commitments globally and delays on acquiring and deploying a modern replacement.

Photo credits to Alert 5.

29/03/2026

There's another question though: how different are the export version of Chinese arms and munitions compared to those supplied to the People's Liberation Army itself? Same goes for radar systems, electronic warfare systems,

29/03/2026

The Partnership for Indo-Pacific Industrial Resilience (PIPIR), a partnership with 16 nations as members, was confirmed to be considering investing on a production facility for 30mm ammunition rounds in the Philippines, as confirmed by the US Department of War.

While the production facility will heavily consider exporting 30mm gun rounds to the US armed forces and other PIPIR partners, it will also be a SRDP project that will provide supply to the Armed Forces of the Philippines which currently have several guns with 30mm rounds including the Philippine Navy's Jose Rizal, Miguel Malvar, Rajah Sulayman, and Acero-class ships, as well as potential upgrades from 25mm to 30mm guns on the Del Pilar-class and the Philippine Army's ASCOD 2 and M113A2 armored vehicles that uses the Elbit Systems UT25 RCWS which can be upgraded to UT30 standard.

The facility will be considered a Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and is a commercial investment deal, no different from companies coming in to the Philippines to invest in a manufacturing plant.

Aside from that, other PIPIR projects include production of solid rocket motors in Japan used in guided munitions, and a radar repair facility for P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft in Australia.

There are also ongoing discussions on developing common standards and shared supply chains for small drones., including work on batteries and motors, as well as potentially jointly building military drones.

There are also other developments being planned but have not been made public by the US DOW and PIPIR, but will definitely

In the Indo-Pacific, PIPIR members include Australia, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand which are all US treaty allies, as well as Singapore which is not a US ally but has very close military relations and advanced technology base.

# PartnershipforIndoPacificIndustrialResilience