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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PH Army showcases growing drone capability of reserve force

PH Army showcases growing drone capability of reserve force

Published Sep 2, 2025 10:37 am
Personnel of the Regional Community Defense Groups (RCDGs) under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Army Reserve Command (PA, RESCOM) showcase their drone capabilities during the Command’s 42nd anniversary celebration at Camp Riego de Dios in Tanza, Cavite on September 1, 2025.⁩ (Photo: PA)
Personnel of the Regional Community Defense Groups (RCDGs) under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Army Reserve Command (PA, RESCOM) showcase their drone capabilities during the Command’s 42nd anniversary celebration at Camp Riego de Dios in Tanza, Cavite on September 1, 2025.⁩ (Photo: PA)
The Philippine Army (PA) has been steadily expanding the unmanned aerial system (UAS) capability of its reserve force, underscoring the service’s shift toward modernization and a stronger role in external defense.
PA Commanding General Lt. Gen. Antonio Nafarrete witnessed a drone capability exhibition of the Reserve Command (RESCOM) during its 42nd founding anniversary at Camp Riego de Dios in Tanza, Cavite on Monday, Sept. 1.
The RESCOM is one of the first PA units to pioneer drone capabilities and train organic personnel as drone operators.
Nafarrete said the integration of UAVs into RESCOM highlights the Army’s broader modernization goals and strengthens its ability to respond not only to conventional threats but also to humanitarian crises.
“In moments of national crises, the distinction between regular and reserve will no longer matter. What will matter most is our shared identity as Filipinos and the future of our people that we must safeguard together,” he said.
He also paid tribute to RESCOM’s role in cultivating a pool of trained reservists who can augment the 110,000-strong regular force.
Nafarrete ensured the seamless integration and training parity of reserve units with regular units as well as the sustained professional development of the Army's reserve force.
The Army’s growing drone capability was not an overnight program, with research and development of such an asset traced back to 2012 with a reported funding of P2.5 million.
The Army then began to acquire various types of UAS for its regular force such as the indigenous drones Raptor and Knight Falcon, which were used during the Zamboanga Siege in 2013, as well as Israel’s Elbit Hermes, Skylark, and Thor, among others.
These were used to enhance the PA’s C4ISTAR (Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, Reconnaissance) capabilities.
In 2023, PA units engaged with the United States Army Pacific’s (USARPAC) 25th Infantry Division on Counter-Small Unmanned Aerial System (C-sUAS) subject matter expert exchange (SMEE) at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija as part of Exercise Salaknib.
Experts from both the PA and USARPAC conducted a series of lectures on how to counter the rapidly proliferating, low cost and potentially lethal and damaging Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) small UASs which cannot be easily detected by air defense systems.
Live flight and counter system measures were also demonstrated during the training.
Recently, PA explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) operators and counterparts from the Philippine Air Force (PAF) and Philippine Navy (PN) completed a First Person View (FPV) drone operation training which bolstered their capability in monitoring demolitions of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and landmines.
The PA said that through flight simulation software, practice drones, and actual FPV operations, training participants gained vital skills in rapid safety observation especially in challenging environments such as jungles, remote islands, and volcanic clearings.

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