The Philippine Navy's newest offshore patrol vessel (OPV) arrived in her home waters late last week following the completion of her delivery voyage from South Korea.
The future BRP Rajah Lakandula is the second of a planned class of six 94--metre OPVs being built for the Philippine Navy by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in fulfilment of PHP30 billion (US$500 million) contract awarded by the Philippine Department of National Defence in 2022.
Class lead ship BRP Rajah Sulayman was commissioned into service in February of this year.
Rajah Lakandula’s armament is optimised for low-intensity operations such as maritime deterrence and sovereignty enforcement, hence the omission of guided missile launchers. This then frees up the navy's larger and more heavily armed Jose Rizal-class and Miguel Malvar-class frigates for long-range strike, air defence, and other critical missions.
The OPV's armament is limited to only a Leonardo/OTO Melara 76mm rapid fire naval gun, two Aselsan SMASH 30mm autocannons mounted on remotely controlled weapon stations, two 12.7mm machine guns, and two Sitep Italia acoustic hailers and laser dazzlers.
The Rajah Sulayman-class OPVs are the first Philippine Navy ships to be equipped with non-lethal light disruption systems.