SAN ANTONIO, Zambales, Philippines – 1st Multi-Domain Task Force soldiers from the 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment (Long Range Fires Battalion) conducted mobility and live-fire training of the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) on April 28, as part of the Counter Landing Live-Fire exercise at Rizal, Palawan.
The HIMARS is a highly mobile multiple launch rocket system that delivers precise, long-range fire while quickly maneuvering in and out of operational environments, making it a difficult and elusive target.
Through a combined effort and detailed planning, the battery successfully executed a 24-hour movement of HIMARS across multiple domains and over hundreds of miles to a firing point. This movement showcased the system's mobility and lethal capability as it supports the U.S.-Philippine shared commitment to advanced military cooperation and regional security
The journey began with the launchers being loaded onto an Air Force C-130J Hercules aircraft in Subic. From there, they were flown to a waiting U.S. Army Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessel. Upon landing, the launchers were driven onto the vessel and transported over 100 miles by sea across Palawan. Once in Bataraza, southern Palawan, the HIMARS were offloaded and driven over 50 miles across the island, navigating both urban and jungle terrain to reach the final shoreline firing site near Rizal. At the site, they successfully fired six training rounds at targets off the coast.
“This event represented a realistic training scenario with our Philippine partners, the environment, and a potential adversary that can’t be fully replicated anywhere else,” said Lt. Col. Ben Blane, commander of 5th Battalion 3rd Field Artillery Regiment (LRFB).
As a theater-level unit and joint force enabler, assigned in the Indo-Pacific, the 1st MDTF plays a vital role in synchronizing long-range precision fires layered with long-range precision effects to create multiple dilemmas and neutralize adversary anti-access and area denial networks.
Balikatan is a longstanding annual exercise between the U.S. and Philippine armed forces designed to strengthen the alliance, showcase the capable combined force, and demonstrate the commitment to regional security and stability.
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