
SOUTH CHINA SEA (July 31, 2024) – Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Mobile (LCS 26) conducts a Maritime Cooperative Activity with Philippine Navy’s Gregorio del Pilar-class patrol ship, BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS 16), (former USCGC Dallas), in the South China Sea, July 31, 2024. Mobile, part of Destroyer Squadron 7, is on a rotational deployment operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with allies and partners and serve as a ready-response force in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Naval Aircrewman Tactical Helicopter 2nd Class Diego Chavez)
US Naval Institute News reports,
U.S. and Philippine warships rendezvoused near a disputed South China Sea feature to conduct a joint maritime patrol on Wednesday.
USS Mobile (LCS-26) and BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS-16) met off Leslie Bank, a maritime feature within Manila’s exclusive economic zone and Beijing’s 10-dash line claim. The littoral combat ship and ex-Coast Guard Hamilton-class cutter drilled in bilateral surface operations and communication, with a video released by the Armed Forces of the Philippines claiming that the two vessels took up a patrol formation.
Nice to see the LCS is apparently armed with Naval Strike Missiles.