August 6, 2013, SUBIC, Philippines
Officials of the Philippine Navy, DFA secretary Albert Del Rosario, out going U.S. Ambassador Harry Thomas and President Benigno Aquino III witness the docking of BRP Ramon Alcaraz in Alava Port, Subic, Zambales.
The 378 ft. offshore patrol vessel traveled for two months before reaching the Philippines from Charleston, South Carolina.
"The Philippine Navy is getting significant boost in its capabilities in keeping our archipelagic waters secured and safe"
-VADM Jose Luis Alano-Flag Officer In Command, Navy
Like BRP Del Pilar, the BRP Ramon Alcaraz is from the U.S.. Coast Guard. It's worth is over six hundred million pesos, a little more expensive than BRP Gregorio Del Pilar. It has a maximum speed of 28 knots and a length of 115.5 meters or 378 feet. It has MK75 Main Battery armament, using 76mm guns. It also has an MK36 SRBOC Missile Decoy Chaff.
BAE System-MK38 MOD 2 25mm Machine Guns and M2HB 50 Caliber Machine Guns where to be installed during its dry docking days.
The vessel maybe second hand but it's engines are brand new, and the main deck is equipped with the most state of the art navigational and radar systems. It has an S-Band and X-Band Radar suite with GPS and Automatic Identification System or AIS. It also has an echo sounder, a retractable hangar and a flight deck.
"Such positive results empowers our government to further promote the modernization of our soldiers. We are gradually erasing the former image of obsolete equipments and harsh condition of our army,"
-President Benigno Aquino III
The ship will undergo dry docking for a month-and-a-half to undergo repainting and improvements of its facilities
The ship was named after Commodore Ramon Alcaraz, a Philippine Navy World War II hero, who was credited for his gallant action under the direct command of General Douglas MacArthur for shooting down three Japanese planes off Bataan in 1942 before surrendering to the Japanese.
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