By Priam Nepomuceno
MANILA – About 500 personnel from the Philippines, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand militaries, taking part in this year’s “Balikatan” maneuvers, conducted a counter-landing exercise in Aporawan, Palawan on Monday.
The PH-US Exercise “Balikatan” 2026 Combined Joint Information Bureau said in a statement late Monday that the troops “coordinated fires from the land and air” to defeat a simulated adversary attack.
“During the counter-landing live-fire training, forces demonstrated their ability to sense the actions of a dynamic notional enemy, make collective real-time decisions, and coordinate an array of fire from missile systems, fighter aircraft, mortars, and machine guns,” it said.
Participants included US Marines from the Marine Rotational Force – Darwin, US soldiers from the 7th Infantry Division/Multi-Domain Command-Pacific, Philippine Marines from the 3rd Marine Brigade, and elements of the Philippine Air Force and Philippine Army.
They were joined by soldiers from the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, and for the first time, soldiers from the 2nd/1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment.
Participating troops using advanced intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities, along with lethal firepower, decided and acted as one team through a combined, multi-domain command, and control node.
“We can talk about all the capabilities we have, but the integration of those capabilities is the cornerstone of how this is done right,” US Marine Corps Rotational Force – Darwin commander US Marine Corps Col. G. J. Flynn III said.
An important product of this exercise, Flynn said, is the friendships made by allied troops by being in the dirt in defensive positions alongside each other.
This training served as the first time that the four nations have conducted a counter-landing live-fire event during the Balikatan.
“Beach defense is not the responsibility of a single unit or domain, it requires seamless integration across services and with our allies,” Philippine “Balikatan” spokesperson and Philippine Marine Corps Col. Dennis Hernandez said.
“Exercises like this ensure that we are prepared to protect our coastal communities and territorial integrity with precision, speed, and overwhelming coordination.”
The training began with intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets detecting a mock enemy amphibious vessel, providing intelligence for decision-making to the C2 (command and control) node.
As the vessel approached the coast, “High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems” (HIMARS) engaged targets from their position at the beachhead.
As enemy assault amphibious vehicles and fast boats raced toward the beach in the training scenario, targets were met with fire from mortars, Stingers, and anti-armor systems like the Javelin and Tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided missiles.
The event culminated in a final defensive line of direct-fire weapons from all participating nations engaging the last wave of targets, neutralizing the threat, and defending the beachhead.
The counter-landing live-fire event and other military training conducted during Balikatan 2026 build tactical proficiency, compatible capabilities, and military-to-military coordination, exemplifying the ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ spirit of the annual drills. (PNA)
