A U.S. Marine takes part in a counter-landing live-fire drill on the western coast of Palawan, Philippines, on Oct. 22, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
ABORLAN, Philippines — U.S. and Filipino marines used live fire Tuesday to rehearse their defense against a hostile amphibious landing, less than 150 miles from the August scene of a coast guard clash between China and U.S.-ally the Philippines.
As part of the annual Kamandag exercise, 150 members of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment from Camp Pendleton, Calif., repelled the simulated sea invasion alongside 150 of their Filipino counterparts from the Palawan-based 3rd Marine Brigade.
The exercise this year involves more than 1,000 members of Marine Rotational Force-Southeast Asia and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Kamandag began Oct. 15 and concludes Friday.
The live-fire event on Palawan was held in Aborlan, a municipality facing the South China Sea that’s about 125 miles east of Sabina Shoal, where Philippine and Chinese coast guard vessels collided Aug. 31.
Philippine authorities allege a Chinese vessel rammed a Philippine ship three times; Chinese authorities claim the Philippine ship instigated the clash. It was the latest in a series of incidents involving vessels from the two nations in or near the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
A U.S. Marine takes aim from a foxhole during a counter-landing live-fire drill on the western coast of Palawan, Philippines, on Oct. 22, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
Ahead of the live-fire drill, the two countries’ marines dug into camouflaged fighting positions in dunes along the coast.
They fired missiles, mortars, artillery and machine guns at a dozen target boats, some moored over two miles from shore.
A pair of F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters, launched from the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer in the Sulu Sea, dropped laser-guided bombs on some of the boats.
Two AH-1 Cobra and two UH-1 Venom helicopters took off from Antonio Bautista Air Base on Palawan and joined the attack.
The air base in the Philippines’ westernmost city, Puerto Princesa, is one of nine military facilities approved for use by U.S. troops under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.
Marines set up an expeditionary advanced base at the airfield before the drill, 1st Battalion commander Lt. Col. Nicholas Freeman said at the beach.
A U.S. Marine runs between palm trees after engaging targets from foxholes during a counter-landing live-fire drill on the western coast of Palawan, Philippines, on Oct. 22, 2024. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)
Expeditionary advanced base operations involve sending hard-to-target units into austere, temporary locations such as islands of the Western Pacific, from which they may block an adversary or resupply friendly forces, according to the Marine Corps.
First Battalion Marines who participated in the Palawan live-fire drill were on the island in April and May, Freeman said.
The Marines and their Filipino counterparts did classroom study and static range fire and practiced seizing key coastal terrain ahead of Tuesday’s exercise, he said.
The battalion’s fire support officer, 1st Lt. Graham Clark, planned the live-fire event to make sure the various munitions, aircraft and personnel kept out of one another’s way once the shooting started.
“This is the environment that we try to simulate back in California, but it’s difficult to do that because we train in the desert,” he said at the event’s end. “We are developing all our tactics to fight in an environment like Palawan.”
