By Jim Gomez, The Associated Press – May 6, 2025, 05:34 AM
The BRP Miguel Malvar takes on water before sinking while being positioned as a target vessel as part of a joint US-Philippines military exercise on Monday. (Armed Forces of the Philippines PAO via AP)
MANILA, Philippines — A World War II-era Philippine Navy ship to be used as a target in a combat exercise by American and Philippine forces accidentally sank Monday hours before the mock assault, prompting the drill to be cancelled, U.S. and Philippine military officials said.
The BRP Miguel Malvar, which was decommissioned by the Philippine Navy in 2021, took on water while being towed in rough waters facing the disputed South China Sea and sank about 30 nautical miles off the western Philippine province of Zambales. Nobody was onboard when the ship listed then sank, the Philippine military said.
American and Philippine forces would proceed with other live-fire maneuvers off Zambales on Monday despite the premature sinking of the Malvar. The ship was built as a patrol vessel for the U.S. Navy in the 1940s and was transferred to Vietnam’s navy before the Philippine military acquired it, Philippine navy Capt. John Percie Alcos said.
“It’s an 80-year-old dilapidated ship and it wasn’t able to withstand the rough seas,” Philippine Lt. Col. John Paul Salgado told The Associated Press.
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