The Transfer of Abukuma-class Destroyer Escorts to the Philippine Navy

Increasing the fleet size is among the top priorities of the Philippine Navy, aside from its recent purchases of modernized naval assets that have recently produced in a South Korean shipyard. 

As commendable as it is in buying new assets that are now forming a significant portion of the naval service branch's Offshore Combat Force, another class of ships from another country next door is likely getting on its way to the fleet, as part of the agreement between the two governments.

FROM THE NEWS REPORTS

JS Sendai (DE-232) forms part of the six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts of the JMSDF.
Image Source.

Before this news broke out, the attention of the Filipino defense community gets fixated into other developments relating to the Armed Forces of the Philippines, specifically with the commissioning of the BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG-06) into the fleet as a full-fledged guided missile frigate during the Philippine Navy anniversary that took place on May 20, 2025. As the celebratory event comes with the addition of the ship, along with two (2) Acero-class vessels, a more exciting event will come in the months to come.

Several months later, on July 6, 2025, Japanese news outlet Yomiuri revealed the first details of what will be a game-changing moment for the capabilities of the Philippine Navy. 

This refers to the revelation that both the Philippine and Japanese governments have reached a finalization in their agreement to the exportation of what will probably be all the six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts currently in service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force at the time this article publishes.

In the said news report from this Japanese news outlet, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force or JMSDF poses to decommission all of its six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts, and is likely to get replaced by the newer Mogami-class frigates that Japan ordered on its local shipbuilding entities like the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. In the agreement, the export aims to improve interoperability between the Philippines and Japan relating to maritime security matters.

This will count as the recent defense transfer made by Japan to the Philippines to-date, with the other being the transfer of TC-90 trainer aircraft to the Philippine Navy in 2017, and Japan’s first successful defense sale to the Philippines through its export of J/FPS-3ME and J/TPS-P14ME surveillance radars that now operates to ensure security of the Philippine Air Defense Identification Zone or PADIZ. The transfer of the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippine Navy will probably be the largest one to-date.

As the Abukuma class likely getting transferred to the Philippine Navy counting as the largest boost both to its firepower and numerical capabilities once succeeded, the following details discussed under this topic will primarily delve to its production and service history, along with the usual information relating to its specifications with its subcomponents within the JMSDF service, and the likely upgrades that the ships receive upon entry to the Philippine fleet composition from 2027 onwards.

THE HISTORY

The Abukuma-class destroyer escorts came as a replacement for the older Yubari-class destroyer escort.
Image from Wikimedia Commons.

As the Philippine Navy sets into finalizing the agreement that will transfer all ‌six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force or JMSDF, let us trace back its history, from when the vessels have designed down to its shipbuilding and eventually its service within the JMSDF. At a glance, the vessels came with anti-submarine warfare in their design, and the capabilities they will have will help the Philippine Navy’s own mandate.

From the beginning, the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts came as part of the JMSDF’s evolution of improving its fleet with capable vessels that came according to its specifications and requirements of that time. 

The vessels, introduced in the late 1980s to early 1990s, came as an improvement over the fleet’s other destroyer escort class, which is the Yubari-class destroyer escort. The 1980s-era Yubari-class design does not satisfy the JMSDF, giving birth to the new Abukuma-class destroyer escort development.

The lead ship, the JS Abukuma (DE-229), had launched in 1988 as part of Japan’s efforts to improve its destroyer escort fleet that covers the shortcomings of the earlier Yubari-class destroyer escort, especially with its small hull size. 

This ‌then moved on for another year until the work on the JS Abukuma (DE-229) completed in 1989 and subsequently introduced to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s fleet. The sixth and final ship, JS Tone (DE-234), completed in 1993.

The construction of all Abukuma-class destroyer escorts comes with a delegation of shipbuilding assignments across key Japanese shipbuilders in the country. Two (2) of all six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts have the hulls produced in either of the three (3) Japanese shipbuilding entities, namely the Mitsui shipyard in Tamano, Japan, the Maizuru (Hitachi) shipyard in Maizuru, Japan, and the Sumitomo shipyard in Uraga, Japan. This gives all entities the experience in the design’s shipbuilding process.

With the completion of all six (6) Abukuma-class destroyer escorts, each of the vessels served a significant role crucial in securing and monitoring the Japanese territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone waters, an activity that still does until today, and definitely until the first of the said destroyer escorts will get decommissioned from active duty within the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force from 2027. The ships will then get replaced by the newer Mogami-class guided missile frigates (FFM).

This means that by 2027, the JS Abukuma, from its launch to decommissioning, has accrued a service life with a total age of 38 years, while the rest of the ships belonging to the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts will also have such an age of around 30-40 years, wherein by that period it will already transferred to the Philippine Navy and will add to the composition of the service branch’s Offshore Combat Force. Reports gathered have confirmed that the Philippine Navy will probably get all six (6) ships.

As there is the likelihood that the naval service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines will get the ships from Japan that counts as a significant force multiplier gain to the fleet, the next sub-topic will delve more into the ship’s specifications, both in its current configuration and what will be its future configuration given that in Japan will probably remove and replace onboard weaponry and sensors under its joint development and production scheme.

THE SHIP'S SPECIFICATIONS

The Abukuma-class destroyer escorts have the hull size and capability of the Jose Rizal-class frigates while having a tonnage of the Rajah Sulayman-class OPVs.
Image Source.

Knowing the ship’s specifications will help provide an idea regarding the capabilities that it possesses, especially understanding its baseline that will give a preference of what the Philippine Navy expects into getting this class of vessel into the fleet. 

Just a disclaimer though, some of the information provided here will include its current load-out during its service within the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, as the armaments onboard might likely get removed and replaced with the ones fitting the Philippine Navy’s requirement.

The first one to cover is ‌its hull dimensions, whereby the size of the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts comes with 109 meters long, 13.4 meters beam, and a draft of 3.8 meters. Its weight displacement is ‌2,000 tons at standard configuration, and 2,550 tons at its full load configuration. For comparison, the Jose Rizal-class frigate of the Philippine Navy has a hull size of 107 meters long, 14 meters beam, and a weight displacement of 2,600 tons.

While both the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts and the Jose Rizal-class frigates share almost similar hull size and tonnage, the latter has the advantage of incorporating a more modern shipbuilding design, as it comes with a helipad, helicopter hangar, and a space for incorporating a Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells for its added security against aerial threats, aside from the commonality of armaments between both ships like the 76mm main gun, anti-ship missiles, torpedo mounts, and close-in weapons system (CIWS).

Speaking of armaments, the current weapons load-out of the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts in its service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force or JMSDF comes with an Oto Melara 76mm main gun, Type 74 launcher for the RUR-5 ASROC anti-submarine rockets, Mk141 canisters for the RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles in a 4x2 configuration totaling 8 antiship missiles onboard, Type 68 triple-racked torpedo tubes for torpedoes in a 3x2 configuration, and a single Mk15 Phalanx CIWS mount.

Take note that with current restrictions on the Japanese side in the export of weapons under its pacifist constitution, there is a greater likelihood that the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts that the Philippine Navy sets to receive will have a different weapons configuration, as compared to the one when it was still serving the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force or JMSDF. This means the likelihood of getting the RUR-5 ASROC launcher, Harpoon anti-ship missiles, and the Phalanx CIWS removed from the ship.

Finally, the propulsion system of the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts come with a Combined Diesel or Gas or CODOG configuration, whereby the vessel’s power output originated from two (2) Kawasaki-Rolls-Royce SM1A gas turbines (26650 SHP output) for its performance mode, and two (2) Mitsubishi S12U-MTK diesel engines (at 6000 hp output) for its regular cruising mode, with a total maximum speed of the vessels of around twenty-seven (27) knots.

With the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts that the Philippine Navy receives will probably go differently from their current configuration under the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force given the restrictions, the following discussion subset will encompass other important information relating the joint production and research scheme that this transfer will undertake, along with its future classification within the fleet and the budget for its rearmament of the ships with ones fitted by the Philippine Navy itself.

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE DEAL

The Philippine Navy recently conducted a joint visual inspection in Japan last August 2025.
Image Source.

In August 2025, the Philippine Navy representatives and their Japanese counterparts took part in a joint visual inspection or JVR activity in Japan, specifically at the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force base of Sasebo in Nagasaki. 

From here, they inspected the condition of the Abukuma-class destroyer escort JS Jintsu (DE-230) and it served as the basis for inspecting the other ships of the class, differently assigned across Japan’s multiple naval bases.

From here, the information provided from sources confirms that there is a high likelihood that the Philippine Navy will get all the six Abukuma-class destroyer escorts, of which this will provide the much-needed boost to the numerical composition of the naval service branch’s Offshore Combat Force. 

This effectively complements the other ships in the fleet, lessening the operational stress of prolonged deployment at sea, while providing the needed presence in the country’s territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone waters.

Despite the boost, it is highly certain that the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will remove the onboard armaments and leave the fitting of newer ones at the discretion of the Philippine Navy through the Joint Development and Production scheme in a way to skirt current restrictions provided under the current Japanese legal system. This put the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts’ armaments in two (2) likely scenarios as presented in the succeeding sentences of this sub-topic.

The first and most likely outcome is for the Philippine Navy to provide it with the minimum required armaments onboard the ship, with upgrades coming in the succeeding years since its commissioning to the fleet. This means ‌that the ships will get their armaments other than the 76mm Oto Melara main gun removed, while likely remaining as a patrol gunship before the ship gets the needed upgrades, most likely patterned after the armaments already available onboard other Philippine Navy ships.

This means that there is a greater chance that the Philippine Navy will arm the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts, likely getting classified as ‘anti-submarine frigates’ upon joining the fleet the armaments it needs as a direct replacement to the ones removed onboard, such as the SSM-700K Haeseong C-Star anti-ship missiles, K745 Blue Shark Torpedoes, and even the Gokdeniz Close-In Weapons System found onboard the Miguel Malvar-class frigates.

The said weapon upgrades, while theoretical in the basis of streamlining logistical chains, will still change at the discretion of the Philippine Navy leadership’s approach into how it envisions the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts, then frigates, will join the fleet. 

Despite this fitting nomenclature of the vessels, this should not stop the fleet from buying more capable vessels that it aims to have, particularly the repeat orders of both the Miguel Malvar (or HDF-3500 under the Full Complement Project), and Jose Rizal-classes.

Still, the deal itself comes as the largest one that the Philippine Navy encounters to date, and is also the largest one that Japan has ever come up with in exporting naval assets, albeit through a transfer, to a foreign country that comes as an immediate neighbor that shares the same national security concerns. 

This growing partnership, coupled with the recently ratified Reciprocal Access Agreement of both countries, is a testament of ‌‌increased defense cooperation between the said countries in the years to come.

LOOKING FORWARD

JS Abukuma (DE-229) is likely the first one to get decommissioned in 2027.
(c) Binmei, YouTube.

For more than thirty (30) years, the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts play a significant role of ensuring the security of Japan’s territorial and exclusive economic zone waters, ensuring that the deterrence exist in keeping intruders from entering its domain, such as what China did with Japan’s southernmost island of Senkaku. Sharing the same concerns in the region, the Philippines receiving these destroyer escorts from Japan is also helping the latter in ensuring the status quo in the region.

The shape in geopolitical dynamics in the Indo-Pacific region made Japan and the Philippines, both countries that bear maritime domains that compose of island groups, share the same interest and concerns with the lingering threat that pose against both of the countries’ sovereignty and national interest, as both experienced the same aggression posed by the regional power’s deployment of its coast guard vessels and maritime militia in a way to increase aggression in an already-dangerous situation.

Japan’s transfer of the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippine Navy simply comes as one of the recent testament of closer bilateral defense ties between both countries, coupled with overwhelming support for providing the country with the needed tools to support its maritime domain awareness. 

One given example coming out of these growing ties is the successful Official Development Aid from JICA for the construction and sale of both the Parola-class and Teresa Magbanua-class MRRVs for the PCG.

Complementing both the pairs of Jose Rizal-class frigate and the Miguel Malvar-class frigate of the Philippine Navy, the number of ships with this classification within the fleet will come at a sum of ten (10) ships, of which it will have followed in by an additional pair of frigates bought under the Frigate Acquisition Project - Full Complement under the Re-Horizon 3 of the Revised AFP Modernization Program. Preferences of the latter project is with either the HDF-3200 or the HDF-3500 designs of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries.

The numbers that might get introduced in the Philippine Navy come as a boost that will probably give the fleet the needed increase of its composition at a short time possible where, alongside the speedy construction of newly built vessels from South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ own shipyard in Ulsan, gives added support not only on providing an assured presence in the Philippine territorial and EEZ waters, but also in ensuring Maritime Domain Awareness in areas like the West Philippine Sea.

Also, introducing the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts to the Philippine Navy will probably ease the operational times that other vessels in the fleet will undertake in the high seas, assuring that there is always a vessel available to undertake maritime defense duties and responsibilities, while minimizing the operational stress that the ships needed, along with having the time allowed for an ensured maintenance and repair periods that will give additional readiness that allow for future patrols.

Looking forward, the Philippine Navy will probably see the Abukuma-class destroyer escorts as an integral part of the fleet itself. And while the naval service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines is gearing itself for a new type of policy direction through the ‘Sail Plan 2040’, the services that these Japanese-made ships will provide to the Philippine Navy will give worth to the territorial defense efforts that the national government aims to achieve against a more powerful adversary.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero for the Philippine Air Force?

The Philippine Air Force still pursues its quest of securing its future formidable multirole fighter jets, interdiction assets that have air interdiction, anti-shipping, and surgical strike capabilities in mind. With the ongoing stiff competition between established aerospace manufacturers that have to take part and are already part of the defense topic discussions, another one unexpectedly emerges, as this option actually resulted from the assessments made by the service branch itself.

IN THE NEWS

The Philippine Air Force sees this as another option for its MRF Acquisition Project.
(This is a U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Courtney Witt, via Wikimedia Commons.)

The multirole fighter jet acquisition project of the Philippine Air Force is yet to reach finalization this year, at least that’s what the Department of National Defense and this service branch under the Armed Forces of the Philippines are trying to aim. 

Currently, the competition is strong between two (2) aerospace manufacturers and their respective offers, which are the United States military industrial company Lockheed Martin and its F-16 Block 70/72 Viper offer, and the Swedish SAAB and its JAS-39 Gripen E/F variant.

Recently, the Philippine Air Force renewed its interest in getting multirole fighter jet squadrons for its operational use, only this time the leadership now considers Japanese-made aircraft, most notably the Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero multirole fighter jet for its operational use. 

The interview took place during the announcement that the Philippine Air Force will purchase an additional squadron of FA-50 lead-in fighter trainers, an interest first announced by the air service branch from 2022.

The consideration comes as the air service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines will materialize the longest-running multirole fighter jet acquisition project, whereby both the Philippine Air Force and the Department of National Defense still see the project as the one with utmost priority, improving the capability of the air service branch that augments the current squadron of FA-50s responsible to cover the country’s air defense identification zone.

Produced between 1995 and 2011, the F-2 Viper Zero multirole fighter jets serve as one of the primary platforms of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force or JASDF in protecting its airspace against intruding parties, particularly the Russians and the Chinese that are entering the Japanese airspace from the northwest and southwest, respectively. 

Being the producer of the aircraft, Japan is the only user of its indigenously built aircraft, itself being a modification from the proven F-16 aircraft platform of Lockheed Martin.

In this topic, the discussions will simply delve into the development and production of this Japanese variant of the F-16 Fighting Falcon, of which the story will also involve some tidbits from the original aircraft that the F-2 Viper Zero derives itself from. 

As an extra point, the said Japanese fighter shares similar DNA to the latest F-16 Block 70/72 Viper multirole fighter jet, itself actively offered by the United States-based aerospace company Lockheed Martin to the Philippine Air Force.

FROM THE PRODUCERS OF THE TERESA MAGBANUA-CLASS MRRVS

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' aerospace division also produces licensed copies of F-15 for JASDF use.
Image retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.

Originating from the discussion relating to the production and eventually the entry of the Teresa Magbanua-class Multirole Response Vessels to the Philippine Coast Guard (and the ongoing production of at least five more vessels of this type), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries as an entity goes beyond the usual shipbuilding practices that made these large Philippine Coast Guard vessels possible, but also they played a key role in establishing and improving the Japanese aerospace industry.

This refers to its engagement with the Japanese aerospace industry itself, as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries played a crucial role into providing the Japan Air Self-Defense Force or JASDF with its licensed-produced military aircraft, with designs usually originated from the United States for domestic altercation and production use such as the Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero multirole fighter aircraft. This comes as a continuation of the aerospace experience embodied by the company even before the Second World War.

One of the fully notable examples that Mitsubishi contributed in aerospace during the Second World War is the Mitsubishi A6M ‘Zero’ fighter plane, in which its agility and maneuverability played a key role in gaining air superiority in the Western Pacific theater in the first months of the war against the United States and its allies, until this was eventually caught up by advanced fighter aircraft developed to counter its capabilities, such as the North American P-51 Mustang Aircraft.

In ‌contemporary times, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ contribution to the development of the Japanese aerospace industry goes beyond the production of the F-2 Viper Zero, but also it involves‌ the locally produced license copies of the F-15J Eagle air superiority fighter (see image above), and the locally produced license copies of S-70 Black Hawk helicopters, which are the Mitsubishi H-60 helicopters for all the service branches of the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF).

With the company’s product line presentation provided, it provides a full picture regarding the experience and expertise that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has in aerospace development and production, and has since then played a critical role in developing and improving the capabilities of Japan Air Self Defense Force into a formidable entity it is today, defending Japanese airspace against intruding Russian and Chinese aircraft. 

The next part of this discussion will delve into the development of the F-2 Viper Zero.

THE DEVELOPMENT

The Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero started as a development project under the name "XF-2".
Image Source.

From a rather obvious standpoint, the F-2 Viper Zero’s design shared from the iconic F-16 Fighting Falcon, as the latter presents as a point of preference for a Japanese company like the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to develop its own fighter aircraft from a proven design, but with tweaks that will come applicable to the requirements presented by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force or JASDF. This development came when the JASDF needed to replace its aging fleet of F-1 supersonic strike aircraft.

As for the reason the F-2 Viper Zero sought ‌inspiration from a foreign-designed fighter aircraft, the story goes back to the 1980s, when Japan’s Technical Research and Development Institute or TRDI seeks for an indigenous design for a future multirole fighter jet concept intended for Japan Air Self Defense-Force use. 

As the Mitsubishi F-1s were more likely to get phased out by the 1990s, it ended in the conclusion that it required a joint partnership and a fighter design derived from the F-16C.

Known as the FS-X or Fighter Support Experimental, the development of the Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero has two (2) primary purposes in mind, the first of which focusing on anti-ship operations that is vital for sea lane protection and amphibious operations deterrence, while the second one focusing on its usual fighter interceptor role that the other aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force has in service. This fits the description of the F-2 Viper Zero being a multirole fighter jet platform.

The agreement reached finalization when Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Lockheed Martin provided the terms that the development cost is having a share of 60% and 40% respectively, with a full technology transfer of the core F-16 design getting transferred to the Japanese entity. 

This then followed into the production of prototypes for flight testing and other purposes in 1997 until it reached serial production just a year later in 1998, when it continued until the orders made by JASDF got fulfilled in 2012.

As the Philippine Air Force expressed its interest in the capabilities and other factors that this Japanese-made aircraft has in consideration while competing to other proven platforms like the JAS-39 Gripen E/F variant of SAAB and the original, latest version of the F-16 Viper Block 70/72 of Lockheed Martin, the following sub-discussion will delve primarily on the specification of the F-2 Viper Zero, especially on the deviations made from the original design that the aircraft has derived from.

SPECIFICATIONS

Here is an image showing a clear comparison between F-16 and the F-2 in terms of their wings and fuselages.
Image Source.

On the image provided above, there is already a minor difference between the F-16 multirole fighter jet made by General Dynamics that eventually became part of Lockheed Martin’s portfolio, and the Japanese derivative that still counts as a license copy of the F-16, a modification suited for the requirements specified by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force or JASDF for an aircraft that share the same DNA. The following details describe its specifications as a fighter aircraft made by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

For its size dimensions, the F-2 Viper Zero has a length of 15.52 meters, a wingspan of 10.8 meters, with the width extended further to 11.13 meters with wingtip launchers, a height of 4.96 meters, and a wing area of 34.84 meter squared. 

Aside from its size, the Japanese-made aircraft has an empty weight of 9.5 tons, a gross weight of 13.5 tons, and ‌a maximum take-off weight, or MTOW, of 22.1 tons. Both size and weight played a significant role in the aircraft’s performance, which is the next one in this discussion.

The aircraft’s performance also comes with its engine setup playing a crucial role in accomplishing the needed objectives on both anti-shipping and air defense operations, whereby the F-2 Viper Zero’s propulsion system comes with a single afterburning turbofan jet engine configuration, similar to its parent F-16 model. The jet’s engine is a General Electric F-110-IHI-129, a license-copied engine made by Japan’s IHI Corporation, formerly the Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co., Ltd.

Regarding the aircraft’s flight characteristics, the F-2 Viper Zero has a maximum speed of Mach 1.7 at high altitude, whereas it has a maximum speed of Mach 1.1 when flying at low altitude. 

Likewise, the operating range of the Japanese-made variant of the F-16 Viper aircraft comes at around 830 kilometers in combat range, while it has a transfer range of 3,500 kilometers, provided that it comes with external fuel tanks onboard for this operation to take place.

For comparison, the latest variant of the F-16, ‌the Block 70/72 Viper variant, has a maximum speed of Mach 2.05, although its sustained speed comes lower at around Mach 1.89. 

Also, there are at least nine (9) hard-points that the F-2 Viper Zero intended for munitions like the AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, while capable of carrying ASM-1 and ASM-2 anti-ship missiles. The F-16 Block 70/72 Viper comes with around 11 hard-points to fit munitions onboard for sortie objectives.

THE LIKELY OUTCOME

While the F-2 Viper Zero is in consideration, the competition still sticks between the offers made by both SAAB and Lockheed Martin.
File Image.

As the Philippine Air Force looking for other options like the Mitsubishi F-2 Viper Zero for its multirole fighter jet prospects, the fact remains that this consideration comes only as a sideline to the greater scheme of this project that the said military service branch aims to have, primarily into securing the deal for the jets before the year 2025 ends. This deal dwells once again between Lockheed Martin’s F-16 Viper Block 70/72 and SAAB’s JAS-39 Gripen E/F variant.

The development comes simply as part of the ongoing story relating to the current limbo surrounding the Multi-role Fighter Jet Acquisition Project of the Philippine Air Force, as its snail-paced progress has span decades since its first inception in the original iteration of the AFP Modernization Program in the 1990s, of which the dilly-dallying movement is still ongoing at the time this article publishes. Still, the leadership’s interest in the Japanese derivative of the F-16 Viper shows their constant interest in getting a multirole fighter.

As this option remains just mere plans, the fact remains that this shows a sign of growing bilateral defense ties between Japan and the Philippines, particularly that the recently signed Reciprocal Access Agreement or RAA between both countries will now come into effect by September 2025. This tie is just the latest one between the both countries in the Indo-Pacific region, the one that shares equal concerns relating to a regional aggressor and that has a geography that lies in an area known as the First Island Chain.

While eyeing ‌the F-2 Viper Zero isn’t surprising for the Armed Forces of the Philippines to see and consider, there are other programs that both Japan and the Philippines gets strongly focused on related to defense, one of which involves the purchase of several Destroyer Escorts that are likely getting decommissioned in the upcoming years, improving the capabilities of the Philippine Navy fleet. This will come with its own set of discussions.

In the end, the growing bilateral ties between Japan and the Philippines are a prospect of shared national defense interest and the importance of providing a collective defense posture with like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific region, especially when considering that a regional power and an adversary is pushing for its own dominance while undermining the interest of its neighbors. Here is hoping for a stronger defense push between countries, with the Philippines focusing on securing its seas and airspace.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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Philippine Defense Budget Statistics from 2019 to 2021

Through the years, the discussion provided among Philippine defense communities only encompasses the thing on the surface, most likely encompassing the military hardware purchased by the Armed Forces of the Philippines through the Department of National Defense under the Revised AFP Modernization Program. 

What's rarely getting a discussion is the one that serve as a critical component that will ensure that various acquisition projects that the Philippine military has will get materialized and eventually getting delivered to the end-user from any of the three branches that defined the Armed Forces of the Philippines. In this topic, the details will become more intricate, as the discussion will cover the country's defense spending from 2019 to 2021.

DISCUSSION OVERVIEW

Defense budgeting is a lifeline that ensures the materialization of the Revised AFP Modernization.

Philippine defense topics of contemporary times usually cover recent updates relating to the ongoing Revised AFP Modernization Program, where the crowd of defense enthusiasts talking to social media usually talks about the essence of securing military hardware of various types to ensure the security and deterrence of the country’s national sovereignty and interest against both domestic and foreign threats, particularly on the projects pushed by all three (3) branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

But all of that talk has an underlying factor that can define or break this defense modernization momentum, one that requires understanding it as this factor plays a big and fully significant role to making sure that the materialization of an acquisition project gets fulfilled, along to its component that ensures its continuous operational, maintenance, and repair requirements throughout its length of active service within the necessities of the Philippine Military.

This factor refers to the aspect of budgeting itself, specifically the very function of government budgeting in relation to how annual appropriations get passed and how the entire defense sector secures a portion of the entire government’s budget allotments, with details added to it as to the quantity of that budgetary pie went to the Revised AFP Modernization Program. The increase and decrease in allocation to the defense sector define how the planners proceed with their respective acquisition projects.

Getting a full discussion on the functionality of the Philippine defense budgetary trends is something that is not founded on, at least not until this article comes in to point out the needed statistical data to provide the full picture of how things came to the overall trends of the defense allotments and the expenditure that always came with it. Add also to that the budgetary technicalities that an average person found to be complex and incomprehensible until an understandable reason gets explained.

Since the enactment of the Republic Act 10349 or the Revised AFP Modernization Program, the annually enacted General Appropriations Act provided a portion of the allotments intended for the full materialization of the acquisition projects under the said law, all of which aim for the improvement of the overall capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, especially at this period where the national government has the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept or CADC as part of its policy.

Add to this are the pressures provided by the country’s key ally, especially with the United States government under the administration of Donald Trump, where the alliances should have committed at least 2% to 5% of their respective Gross Domestic Product or GDP output to finance their respective defense programs and upkeep. With the figure provided, this writeup aims to provide additional understanding of the statistical data relating to the country’s national defense spending annually.

In its first of a multiple series that will release on this website in the upcoming years, the information provided will give full insight to the budgetary trends relating to the Philippine defense spending, especially in relation to its annual reports of its Gross Domestic Product, in this case spanning three (3) years from year 2019 to 2021. The succeeding years will have its own entry, and the previous years before 2019 have insufficient data to make it into this discussion as of this time of publishing.

AT A GLANCE

Here is the statistical data originating from reliable sources.
Click the table to enlarge.

For this discussion, as the title itself suggests, will encompass Philippine defense budgetary allotments encompassing three (3) years, although the other years, particularly the latter ones, will come as a separate topic to ensure that each content will come manageable to delve on, as the details on each fiscal year’s expenditure per service branch and other services within the Department of National Defense will also come as part of the entire presentation.

As the topics covered three (3) years from 2019 to 2021, the details will come with a comparative data presentation, which at a glance, is present as statistical information provided in the table displayed above. 

The parameters presented are as follows: the years covered in this scope and the allotments presented under the Department of National Defense, including agencies outside the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Added to it is the budget for the Revised AFP Modernization Program, plus under ‘Un-programmed’ column.

Another set of parameters presented in the table above includes the overall Gross Domestic Product or GDP that the Republic of the Philippines produced from 2019 to 2021, both in dollar and peso denomination, with the latter having a calculated average for foreign exchange being a reliable parameter for calculations. 

Completing the table presented here will go as the percentage (%) of the defense budget to the country’s annual GDP, giving a picture of its trend with the presented three (3) years as a parameter.

At a glance, as this section intends to be, presents a promising prospect to the overall budgetary presentation that the Department of National Defense has as to the respect to the annual Gross Domestic Product that the Republic of the Philippines have as its output for the said three (3) years. In 2019, the total defense budget comes at around Php 186.222 billion, with the percentage of the GDP being around 0.95%. The gross domestic product, or GDP, for the year 2019 is at around Php 19.507 trillion.

In the year 2020, the budget presented as part of the Department of National Defense’s own expenditure for the year totals at around Php 196.744 billion, an increase of around Php 10.5 billion compared to the previous year. 

That also reflects its increase, respectful to the annual Gross Domestic Product of the country, whereby the latter, amounting to Php 17.355 trillion, comprises around 1.13% of the entire GDP. The percentage clearly breaches the 1% share, as opposed to the previous year’s percentage.

Finally, the figures in 2021 give a slight shrinkage in the defense spending percentage to the GDP, although the shrinkage is only small at around 1.11%. Still, the budget of the Department of National Defense for the year still saw an increase to around Php 216.471 Billion, of which the Revised AFP Modernization Program also saw an increase for the first time as opposed to the constant Php 25 Billion and Php 5 Billion on both programmed and un-programmed appropriations, respectively, totalling Php 30 Billion.

While the figures presented on the table can only provide much insight on the overall Philippine defense budget that spans three (3) years, as mentioned, the following details will delve deeper to the breakdown of each object of expenditures that the Department of National Defense have in this presentation, ranging from the respective budget of all three (3) service branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, down to the three (3) budget clusters - PS, MOOE, and CO.

For reference, here is an official GDP data from the World Bank (archived link here). 

PHILIPPINE DEFENSE BUDGET - FY 2019

The overall breakdown of the Philippine defense budget under the
2019 General Appropriations Act.
Image Source.

On the table presented above, the Department of National Defense presents a budget amounting to Php 186.222 billion under the 2019 General Appropriations Act, with the Armed Forces of the Philippines getting the huge portion of the defense budget pie, at around Php 180.398 billion. 

The agency that got the second place in the largest portion of the 2019 defense budget is the Veterans Memorial Medical Center, with a budget of around Php 1.866 billion, followed by the Office of Civil Defense, which has around Php 1.3 billion.

Breaking it down to the service branches under this period, the Philippine Army received the largest pie with the total budget amounting to Php 91.407 billion, followed by the Philippine Navy, where its budget comes at around Php 27.842 billion. 

Finally, the Philippine Air Force amounts to around Php 24.584 billion. The amounts under Capital Outlay also come with a similar ranking, with Php 3.515 billion, Php 1.252 billion, and Php 352 million distributed accordingly among the three branches, in that order.

The largest portion of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ budget under this fiscal period goes to the expenditures that fall under the Personnel Services or PS cluster, of which the budget goes to the salary, benefits, and pension of both active and retired personnel that belong to the Philippine military. 

The breakdown is the following allotments: Php 74.488 billion for the Philippine Army, Php 19.334 billion to the Philippine Navy, Php 14.743 billion for the Philippine Air Force, and Php 5.740 billion for the AFP-GHQ.

For the Revised AFP Modernization Program, this line item falls under the Capital Outlay portion of the General Headquarters, AFP and AFP-wide Service Support Units or AFPWSSUS, with that allotment keeping the fixed amount of Php 25 Billion, without the usual Php 5 Billion allotment for the program lined under the ‘Un-programmed Appropriations’ portion of this fiscal year’s General Appropriations Act that the succeeding years have, provided on the table above.

Continuing to the budget breakdown for the fiscal year 2019, the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ budget for Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses or MOOE has a sum of Php 35,732,408,000.00 with the Philippine Army having the largest pie at Php 13.402 billion, followed by the Philippine Air Force with the budget of around Php 9.488 Billion allotted for this cluster. Completing the list is the Philippine Navy with a budget of Php 7.255 billion, and AFP-GHQ with a budget of around Php 5.587 billion.

The year 2019 will be the period where the Philippine defense budget in total equates to 0.95% of the said fiscal period’s Gross Domestic Product as reported by the World Bank’s own official data, where the figures provided for the year is at around US$376.820 Billion, or Php 19.507 Trillion based on the said year’s average foreign exchange rate. As provided on the table ‘at a glance’, the Philippines’ defense budget will breach the 1% threshold in the succeeding year.

At the turn of the decade comes its new set of figures and relevant budgetary data earmarked for the Philippine defense expenditure purposes, although several of its output might have a minor pushback given that an unexpected turn of events, namely a medical health emergency that struck the world economy, contracting each country’s economic output with that period. Despite this, the following year provided its statistical data for comparative purposes as part of this topic.

PHILIPPINE DEFENSE BUDGET - FY 2020

The overall breakdown of the Philippine defense budget under the
2020 General Appropriations Act.
Image Source.

Coming at 1.13% total rate compared to the country’s overall Gross Domestic Product at the period at Php 17.355 Trillion, the overall Philippine defense budget expenditure breached the 1% of the Gross Domestic Product share percentage, which might seem signifying relating to the growth of the share of the defense expenditure to the overall economic output for the year. However, deep details regarding this explanation entail the reason relating to this achievement.

During the year, an unexpected global event took place, where a global pandemic got triggered because of the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, resulting in a series of enforced lockdowns that have rendered the global economy to a standstill. 

Because of this, the Philippine economy contracted a bit, of which compared to the 2019 Gross Domestic Product of Php 19.507 trillion, the country’s output in 2020 lowered significantly at around Php 17.355 trillion.

Still, the overall Philippine defense budget in 2020 still saw significant growth, with the allotment presented under the General Appropriations Act ending up having a total figure of Php 191.744 billion, higher than 2019’s Php 186.222 billion budget. 

Also, compared to the defense budget in 2019, the allotments for the Revised AFP Modernization Program under the un-programmed appropriations appeared, with the amount totaling Php 5 billion, while the programmed budget remained at Php 25 billion.

Going to the specifics, the Php 191.744 billion defense budget breaks down into the following details as discussed in the following sentences. Personnel Services or PS allotments for personnel basic salary and benefits have the largest pie of the budget at Php 119.716 Billion, trailing next is the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses at Php 41.340 Billion, and Capital Outlay, which includes the allotment for the Revised AFP Modernization Program, at Php 30.686 Billion.

On the presented breakdown, the allotment provided for the Armed Forces are as follows - Php 118.110 Billion for the Personnel Services or salaries and benefits for both uniform and civilian personnel of the agency, Php 37.693 Billion for the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses or for upkeep of both military equipment and military facilities, Php 19 Million for Financial Services, and Php 30.201 Billion for Capital Outlay, with Php 25 Billion Revised AFP Modernization Program budget included in the figure.

Now talking to the breakdown among service branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines under the 2020 General Appropriations Act, the one that receives the largest pie of allotments is the Philippine Army, amounting to Php 92.508 Billion, followed by the Philippine Navy at Php 29.054 Billion, and last is the Philippine Air Force at Php 26.436 Billion. The budget under the AFP-General Headquarters and AFP Wide Service Support Units (including the RAFPMP allotment) is at around Php 38.005 billion.

The next part will complete the three (3) year comparison of defense expenditures that the Republic of the Philippines have from 2019 to 2021, with the latter getting a boost for its budget for the Revised AFP Modernization Program for the first time on both programmed and un-programmed appropriations. 

As presented at a glance, the trend of the annual Philippine defense budget comes at a constantly increasing pace, with the 2021 budget surpassing Php 200 billion for the first time.

PHILIPPINE DEFENSE BUDGET - FY 2021

The overall breakdown of the Philippine defense budget under the 
2021 General Appropriations Act.
Image Source.

Coming at 1.11% of the Gross Domestic Product for the year, the Philippine defense budget saw a bit dipping share compared to the output amounting to Php 19.419 Trillion, but the overall defense budget trend still saw a significant increase, specifically to the allotments intended to the Revised AFP Modernization Program, as it is a first time for this program to have an appreciable amount as compared to the constant Php 25 Billion allotment that came before this fiscal year.

Speaking of that first time, the Revised AFP Modernization Program under the 2021 General Appropriations Act received at least Php 27 billion, a boost of at least Php 2 billion from the original allotments provided in the prior two (2) years within this discussion’s own parameter. 

Likewise, the allotments provided under the un-programmed appropriations for the Revised AFP Modernization Program also received their own increase, which is at Php 11 billion, or Php 6 billion higher than what is usually given.

This is also the year that the Philippine defense budget breached the Php 200 billion mark, whereby the allotments presented in the 2021 General Appropriations Act have at least Php 205.471 billion, as compared to the Php 191.744 billion allotments set aside for this sector under the 2020 General Appropriations Act. 

The increase reflects the increasing budgetary requirements of the Department of National Defense, specifically the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ operational, maintenance, and repair (MRO) requirements.

Going on the breakdown, a huge chunk of it, at least amounting to Php 199.415 billion, goes to the Armed Forces of the Philippines, with Php 97.625 billion of the allotment going to the Philippine Army. Both the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Air Force both have a respective share of the pie amounting to Php 30.203 billion and Php 31.552 billion, with the remaining part of the budget went to the AFP-Wide Service Support Units, with its total allotment of Php 40.034 billion.

The portion of the Php 40.034 billion allotted under the AFP-Wide Service Support Units is the Php 27 billion allotted for the Revised AFP Modernization Program, which received its increase as mentioned throughout this discussion. 

It ‌also forms the largest share for this portion under the General Headquarters of the AFP under the Capital Outlay cluster, while the remaining cluster has at least Php 6.445 billion for Personnel Services, and Php 6.128 billion for Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses.

As expected, the largest share of the budget for all three (3) branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines is for the Personnel Services or for the salaries and benefits of the personnel that have served in each of the branches, with the Philippine Army receiving Php 79.173 billion, the Philippine Air Force receiving Php 15.100 billion, and the Philippine Navy receiving Php 20.916 billion. The branches’ MOOE comes at around Php 15.787 billion, Php 14.899 billion, and Php 9.168 billion, respectively.

Now that the discussion of the breakdown of budgetary allotments for the Philippine defense from 2019 to 2021 fully presented, the next part of this discussion will be more theoretical in its tone, as the main highlight focuses more on the projected budgetary output for the Philippine defense, especially if the said years, based on the annual Gross Domestic Product, received at least 2% of the said economic parameter, and its effect to the Philippine defense programs, based on the prices of current military purchases.

THEORETICAL PROJECTIONS

The Philippine defense budget in this scenario ranges between Php 300 billion to almost Php 1 trillion for its defense expenditures if given the 2-5% GDP projections.

Now that the Philippine defense budgetary statistics with data from 2019 to 2021 as a parameter and the General Appropriations Act of the said fiscal periods being the basis for providing the actual percentage of the defense budget of the country compared to the Gross Domestic Product, this portion will delve on the theoretical realm of possibilities, notably on the scenario if the Philippine defense allotments comprise at least 2% or 5% of the Gross Domestic Product as the primary basis.

Based on the data provided above, the defense expenditures based on the 2% and 5% of the Gross Domestic Product comes higher, perhaps even twofold compared to the budget presented for the entire Department of National Defense from 2019 to 2021, and even 200 times to 300 times larger to what has allotted to the Revised AFP Modernization Program presented on the said three years, as the figure comes limited always at around Php 25 billion to Php 30 billion per annum at an average.

For the year 2019 as an example, the 2% share of the Gross Domestic Product that have set aside for defense based on the figures on the table above comes at around Php 390.141 billion, which is 2 times higher than the actual figure for the budget under the Department of National Defense amounting to Php 186.222 billion. 

Likewise, the 5% defense expenditure share in this scenario will render the Philippine defense budget an amount of Php 975.352 billion, a Php 25 billion difference from securing the Php 1 trillion mark.

Meanwhile, the defense expenditure figures for 2020, following the parameters, will give the Philippine defense budget allocations an increase of around Php 358.911 billion for the 2% share basis, and Php 897.277 billion for the 5% share basis. As usual, the actual budget under the 2020 General Appropriations Act for the Department of National Defense amounts to Php 196.744 billion, although the dip in the amounts in the theoretical scenario is noticeable given the global health concern throughout the year.

In the year 2021, the figures presented themselves as Php 388.380 billion for the 2% share of the Gross Domestic Product provided for Philippine defense expenditure in this theoretical scenario, and Php 970.951 billion for the 5% share, which are still lower than the 2019 figures presented as this said year comes as the country and the entire world still recovered from the global health concern that have occurred a year prior. Still, the figures presented are higher than the actual Php 216.471 billion budgetary figure.

The figures presented, as provided in this theoretical output, might give the Armed Forces of the Philippines an opportunity to improve its firepower and external defense-related projects, plans, and programs at a hyper-drive, as this enable each of the service branch of the Philippine military further increase the numbers of needed hardware purchased under both Horizon 2 and 3 phases of the Revised AFP Modernization Program, while improving existing facilities and building new ones to shelter the newly purchased capability.

Given the figures under this presentation, this will enable the Department of National Defense and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to quickly building up not only its big ticket acquisition projects of military hardware intended for addressing both domestic and foreign territorial defense related threats, but also to give opportunity to expand and improve its existing facilities, all in which going in line with its long-term plans, as this will come useful for the country to exercise its national interest in succeeding years to come.

IN CONCLUSION

The bicameral legislature has the final say on budgetary matters, including defense.
Pitz Defense Analysis file image.

The discussion as presented here is the full picture of the Philippine defense budgetary expenditures that have taken place within the said three (3) years as mentioned, which is from 2019 to 2021. 

This also means that there will be more of this to come as part of the growing topics to delve into regarding the broader scope of the functionalities of the Philippine defense topics, going beyond the usual talks on the recent military hardware that the Armed Forces of the Philippines is keen into buying on.

Discussing the budget that runs Philippine defense is really important to delve into, especially on the numbers that are running the actual expenditures presented by the executive branch of the government through the DBCC or the Development Budget Coordination Committee, which presents the proposed budget for the succeeding fiscal year before the bicameral plenaries of both the House of Representatives and Senate before it becomes the official General Appropriations Act for the year.

The defense spending for the said three (3) years in this discussion presented to be just limited to just 1% of the GDP or the Gross Domestic Product, which is a given for the government budget that always focuses on more pressing expenditures relating to social services such as additional infrastructures for connecting communities and making lives easier, or on education where it gives opportunity to the population to be more productive citizens as they prepare to be part of the country’s economy.

One keynote to point out is that the countries that the Philippines has a strong alliance with, like the United States, has a current policy that pushes its alliances to have a defense expenditure of at least two percent (2%) of the Gross Domestic Product, and since then have increased further to as high as five (5%) of the Gross Domestic Product that a country has produced in a fiscal period. Of course, there is a likelihood that the Philippines will not adhere to this scheme, citing its budget also allotted to other matters as mentioned.

Should the Philippines follow the increase of getting its defense spending to at least two percent (2%) or five percent (5)% of the Gross Domestic Product, there is a clear indicator that the Armed Forces of the Philippines can accomplish most of its acquisition objectives under the Revised AFP Modernization Program, specifically on both the Horizon 2 and the Re-Horizoned 3 timelines that its implementation phase might have gotten shorter than the current financial situation that all three military branches are dealing.

With the Php 2 trillion ten-year based Re-Horizon 3 now rolling, the increase of allocation on the defense spending clearly provides a large difference on its overall output, specifically on the timeline of accomplishing key acquisition projects and even getting several piecemeal projects like the acquisition of the Miguel Malvar-class frigate under the Corvette Acquisition Project accomplished by getting more than a pair of ships in one go, or even getting this F-16 Viper full package with ease.

In the long run, the Armed Forces of the Philippines might get the capability it needs under the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept or CADC, although the presented increase in this theoretical budget might have accomplished this concept sooner. 

Still, getting the projects realized depends on the country’s key policymakers, as the increasing tension in the Indo-Pacific region suffices as justification for an increase in defense spending, especially for a country like the Philippines that ensures its national interest.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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