US Army fires Tomahawk missile from new Typhon launcher during Philippines drill

ILOCOS NORTE, Philippines — The U.S. Army Pacific’s 1st Multi-Domain Task Force and the Philippine Army Artillery Regiment have test-fired a Tomahawk cruise missile from the Typhon launcher in the central Philippines — and it successfully hit a target around 600 kilometers away in Nueva Ecija.

Col. Dennis Hernandez of the Philippine Marines told Defense News the cruise missile was launched at around 12:10 a.m local time on May 5 and landed at the impact area within Fort Magsaysay, the Army’s main battle camp, in Laur, Nueva Ecija, roughly an hour later.

“The missile was very precise. Let’s say if you want to hit a window from a far distance, it lands directly into that window,” Hernandez said. “This skimming missile traveled all the way from Tacloban to the target in Laur.”

Exercise officials meant for the Tomahawk missile to support ground troops in a night land maneuver exercise led by the 25th Infantry Division in Fort Magsaysay, part of the ongoing Balikatan annual joint drills between American and Filipino troops.

This year’s Balikatan drill involves roughly 17,000 troops from Japan, Australia, France, Canada and New Zealand.

The Typhon launcher’s presence in the Philippines, let alone a test-firing of one of its variable munitions, has irked Chinese officials because of its long-range capability, especially when loaded with Tomahawks.

Philippine officials said training on the Typhon missile system will help guide future acquisitions.

There was some back-and-forth earlier in the exercise about whether the Typhon launch would happen at all. Local defense officials initially announced it for May 4 or May 5, but U.S. military officials suggested it could be canceled because of unspecified “obstacles.”

In the end, the launch was timed ahead of a joint maritime strike in Ilocos Norte, according to exercise planners. That event will feature the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s Type 88 anti-ship missile system and the U.S. Marine Corps’ NMESIS weapon, a mobile, shore-based missile launcher designed to sink ships.

An April 27 navigational warning issued by the Philippine Coast Guard in Eastern Visayas, where Tacloban City is located, urged locals to take precautionary measures from May 5 until May 7 due to activities in the waters off San Pedro Bay during the Balikatan exercises.

Later, another notice was issued to warn residents of a missile-related activity involving the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile system (TLAM).

“Using the Tomahawk was planned — but it depended on the scenario on the ground. There’s a control group that controls the scenario and the exercise and if it is needed, then it is fired,” Hernandez explained.

“It just so happened that the scenario last night required using the Tomahawk to support ground troops,” he added.

Gordon Arthur contributed to this report.

Editor’s note: This story was updated the correct the distance traveled by the Tomahawk missile and the exact launch time.

Leilani Chavez is an Asia correspondent for Defense News. Her reporting expertise is in East Asian politics, development projects, environmental issues and security.

菲律宾北伊罗戈省——美国陆军太平洋第一多域特遣部队和菲律宾陆军炮兵团在菲律宾中部使用“台风”发射器试射了一枚“战斧”巡航导弹，并成功击中了约 600 公里外新怡诗夏省的目标。

菲律宾海军陆战队上校丹尼斯·埃尔南德斯告诉《防务新闻》，这枚巡航导弹于当地时间 5 月 5 日凌晨 12 点 10 分左右发射，大约一小时后落在新埃西哈省劳尔镇马格赛赛堡（陆军主要作战营地）的撞击区。

“这枚导弹非常精准。比如说，如果你想从远处击中一扇窗户，它就能直接落入那扇窗户里，”埃尔南德斯说。“这枚掠地导弹从塔克洛班一路飞到劳尔的目标。”

演习官员计划使用战斧导弹支援地面部队在马格赛赛堡举行的夜间陆地机动演习，该演习由第25步兵师领导，是美菲军队正在进行的年度联合军演“肩并肩”的一部分。

今年的“肩并肩”联合军演约有来自日本、澳大利亚、法国、加拿大和新西兰的17000名士兵参加。

由于台风导弹发射器具有远程攻击能力，尤其是在装载战斧导弹时，其在菲律宾的出现，以及对其可变弹药的试射，激怒了中国官员。

菲律宾官员表示，对台风导弹系统的训练将有助于指导未来的采购。

演习初期，关于“台风”导弹发射是否会进行曾有过一些反复。当地国防官员最初宣布发射日期为5月4日或5日，但美国军方官员暗示，由于一些未指明的“障碍”，发射可能会取消。

据演习策划人员透露，此次导弹发射最终安排在北伊罗戈省联合海上打击行动之前。该行动将使用日本陆上自卫队的88式反舰导弹系统和美国海军陆战队的NMESIS武器——一种旨在击沉舰船的移动式岸基导弹发射器。

4月27日，菲律宾海岸警卫队东维萨亚斯分队（塔克洛班市所在地）发布航行警告，敦促当地居民在5月5日至7日期间采取预防措施，因为在“肩并肩”联合军演期间，圣佩德罗湾附近水域将有活动。

后来，又发布了另一份通知，警告居民注意与战斧陆攻导弹系统（TLAM）有关的导弹活动。

“使用战斧导弹是计划之内的——但这取决于现场情况。有一个控制小组负责控制演习和现场情况，如果需要，就会发射导弹，”埃尔南德斯解释说。

“昨晚的情况恰好需要使用战斧导弹支援地面部队，”他补充道。

Gordon Arthur对本报道亦有贡献。

编者按：本文已更新，更正了战斧导弹的飞行距离和确切发射时间。

莱拉尼·查韦斯是《防务新闻》的亚洲记者。她的报道专长是东亚政治、发展项目、环境问题和安全。