Philippine Marines Are Eying Mini Drones for Recce, SAR Missions

The Philippines Department of National Defense (DND) is embarking on the acquisition of six unmanned aerial systems (UAS) as part of the Marine Forces Imagery and Targeting Support System (MITSS) anticipated to improve surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities over the nations’ thousands of islands.

The Philippines Army is already operating some locally made ‘tactical’ unmanned aerial systems, among them a small drone produced by OB Mapua. These small UAS will be allocated to support the nation’s three marine brigades, performing reconnaissance, surveillance missions and help in search and rescue operations.

While the specific unit to receive the small drones has not been disclosed, it is likely they will be fielded with the Philippines’ Force Recon Battalion (FRBn), a special-warfare specialized unit supporting all three brigades.

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