Asia Defense

US Navy Sends Electronic Attack Warplanes to Philippines Amid South China Sea Tensions

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Asia Defense

US Navy Sends Electronic Attack Warplanes to Philippines Amid South China Sea Tensions

Four aircraft arrived at Clark Air Base for pilot training and to support U.S. Navy operations in the South China Sea.

US Navy Sends Electronic Attack Warplanes to Philippines Amid South China Sea Tensions
Credit: US Navy

Amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, the United States Navy dispatched four U.S. Navy EA-18G Growler airborne electronic attack aircraft and about 120 military personnel to Clark Air Base, an air force base located on Luzon Island in the Philippines, according to a U.S. Seventh Fleet press release.

The four aircraft and 120 personnel arrived on June 15 for training with Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) FA-50 aircraft pilots and to support U.S. and Philippine naval operations in the South China Sea, as the statement makes clear with a veiled reference to so-called freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs) in the disputed waters.

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