The Gregorio del Pilar - Class Frigate of the Philippine Navy

Gregorio del Pilar - Class Frigate

The Gregorio del Pilar class is a multi-role frigate of the Philippine Navy which have been in service since 2011. Currently, the ship class has three ships named (FF-15) BRP Gregorio del Pilar, (FF-16) BRP Ramon Alcaraz and (FF-17) BRP Andres Bonifacio. They are intended to improve maritime security of the Philippines in Spratly Island and Scarborough Shoal Islands in the South China Sea.

History of Gregorio del Pilar -class Frigate

The vessel were formerly Hamilton-class cutter operated by the United States Coast Guard (USCG), an all-weather, high-endurance cutter class. Built by Avondale Shipyard, which are now part of the Ingalls Shipbuilding. The 12 Hamilton-class high endurance sutters were inducted into the US Coast Guard between 1967 and 1972. The fleet undergone upgrade by the US through the Fleet Rehabilitarion and Modernization (FRAM) programme until 1992. There are three class cutters have been acquired by the Philippines from United States under the Excess Defense Article Programme.

Commissioning of the Gregorio del Pilar-class Frigate

In 13th May 2011, at Alameda Point in California,  former USCGC Hamilton (WHEC-715)  was transferred to the Philippine Navy and renamed it as BRP Gregorio del Pilar (FF-15). This ship performed it's maiden voyage in July 2011 to the Philippines and the Ship' Arrival ceremony was on 23rd of August 2011. The BRP Gregorio del Pilar was commissioned and entered service to the Philippine Navy in 14th December 2011.

The former USCGC Dallas (WHEC-716) cutter was the second Hamilton-class cutter acquired by the Philippine Navy.  Turnover ceremony to the Philippine Navy was on 22nd May 2012 held at the Federal Law Enfircement Training Center Pier Papa in North Charleston, South Carolina. The ship was named BRP Ramon Alcaraz (FF-16) and was renovated at a cost of USD15.15 million. The BRP Ramon Alcaraz arrival ceremony held at Subic Harbor on 6th August 2013. It was commisioned and entered service on 22nd November 2013.

Third former Hamilton-class cutter, USCGC Boutwell (WHEC-719) was acquired by the Philippine Navy. In July 2016, it was renamed to BRP Andres Bonifacio (FF-17), commisioned and enter service while in Alameda, California United States. It reach Manila at the Manila South harbor Philippines  last November 2016.

Gregorio del Pilar-class Specifications

As a Modernized frigate of its class, there vessels incorporate new navigational and electronic systems, new armament and anti-submarine warfare capability. The displacement of this class has 3,390 tones which enables it to accommodate 162 personnel, including 19 officers. It has an overall length of 115.2 meters and the beam has 13.1 meters with a hull drought of 6.1 meters.

The vessel has a flight deck at hte stern side of the frigate which is intended to support take-off and landing of one AugustaWestland AW-159 Wildcat helicopter. It also carries 2 Rigid-hull Inflatable Boat and has a retractable hangar and flight deck.

The Commander of the ship is located enclosed bridge located at midship. The antennas and radars mounted atop the bridge to ensure safe operation at sea. These radar are the Kelvin Hughes MantaDigital 25KW X-band magnetron navigational radar, Kelvin Hughes MantaDigital 200KW SharpEye S-band solid state navigation/surface search radar and the Furuno FAR-28X7 series Navigation Radar.

Armaments of the Frigate

The Gregorio del Pilar-class frigates are armed with two MK 38 Mod 2 auto cannon systems for the protection of the ship against surface threats in both day and night conditions. The main gun  mounted in the bow is the 76mm OTO MELARA compact gun is intended for both surface and air targets. The warship also armed with two 20mm Oerlikon guns for close-range air threats adn four M2HB 0.50 calibre machine gun to engage light targets. The Electronic warfare and decoys are the 2  Mk 36 Super Rapid Blooming Offboard Countermeasures (SRBOC) chaff and decoy launching systems.

Future Armaments and Upgrades

The Gregorio del Pilar-class radar will be upgraded to AN/SPS-77 Sea Giraffe AMB surface and air search 3D radar system. The US State Department already approved the Foreign Military Sale of two SAAB  AN/SPS-77 Sea Giraffe AMB surface & air search 3D radar. Also four MK 38 Mod 3 machine gun system were acquired through foreign military sales and are expected to be completed by 2018. Another upgrade will be an ASW system in all class of the ship. The RGM-84 Harpoon missile or RIM-116 Rolling Air frame Missile planned to be installed.

Propulsion and Endurance

The Del Pilar-class frigate is powered by a combined diesel or gas (CODOG) propulsion system. The ship are equipped with two Pratt & Whittney FT4A-6 gas turbines delivering 18,00 Horsepower (hp) or 13,000 kilowatt) each and two Fairbanks-Morse 38TD8-1/8-12 12-cylinder diesel engine delivering 3,500 horsepower (hp) or 2,610 kilowatt power each diesel engine. It has a maximum speed of 29 knots, up to a range of 9,600 nautical miles at 15 knots and it has an endurance of 30 days without refueling at sea. Also, a retractable/rotatable bow propulsion unit provides maneuverability in tight situations.