Ilocos norte: Rescue aircraft and personnel of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) have taken part in the "mass casualty medical evacuation" (MEDEVAC) simulation during this year's "Balikatan" exercises. The drills, conducted from May 3 to 4, involved the 505th Search and Rescue Group and S-7 Aeromedical Team, as confirmed in a Facebook post by the PAF on Monday night. The MEDEVAC drills were part of the "Casualty Care and Evacuation Through Military and Civilian Partnership Activity" associated with Balikatan.
According to Philippines News Agency, this year's Balikatan exercises, scheduled from April 20 to May 8, saw the participation of 17,000 personnel from the armed forces of the Philippines, United States, Australia, Japan, Canada, France, and New Zealand. The PAF emphasized its role in enhancing aeromedical response capabilities during emergencies through these activities.
During the simulation, a W-3A "Sokol" helicopter was utilized to transport a simulated casualty to a designated triage area, demonstrating timely and efficient aeromedical evacuation procedures. The exercise underscored the significance of integrated casualty response mechanisms in complex emergency scenarios, supporting the PAF's mission to build a capability-driven and values-based organization, while contributing to national and regional security efforts.
In another development, Marine Col. Dennis Hernandez, spokesperson for the Philippine "Balikatan", confirmed reports of the firing of a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) from a Typhon Medium Range (MRC) missile system in Tacloban early Tuesday morning. The TLAM was fired at around 12:12 a.m., reaching its impact point around 1 a.m. in Laur, Nueva Ecija, a site also used by Philippine artillery units for practice.
Col. Hernandez noted that this marked the first instance of a Tomahawk being fired during the drills, supporting a "notional activity" for a "ground attack" mission in the area. Fired from Tacloban, the Tomahawk, a long-range missile, is capable of targeting distant locations, with online sources indicating a range of 1,350 to 2,500 kilometers.
