1947–1971: a naval air arm whose birth date is disputed

The Philippine Navy’s air arm is small and its origins are poorly documented. English Wikipedia says the naval aviation arm was formed in 1951, the year the Philippine Naval Patrol became the Philippine Navy on 5 January, and that it is “now the Naval Air Group”. The service itself counts from earlier: in October 2023 the Naval Air Wing celebrated its 76th founding anniversary, which points to 1947, the year Executive Order No. 94 raised the Offshore Patrol to a major command. Neither date is backed by a primary document reached for this page, so both are given. What is clear is that for most of its life the arm flew a handful of light aircraft for liaison, patrol and search, while the Philippine Air Force owned the bigger maritime types — Naval News notes that the country’s seaplanes, HU-16 Albatross flying boats, belonged to the air force.

1971–2012: Sangley Point, Islanders and Bo 105s

Its home became Sangley Point at the tip of the Cavite peninsula. The United States handed the naval station there to the Philippine Navy and Air Force on 1 September 1971, and the two services have shared it since; Wikipedia records the navy’s MF-30 and MF-40 squadrons and its Naval Air School Center (NATS-50) on the field. The equipment of these decades was largely made at home: the state-owned Philippine Aerospace Development Corporation assembled 67 Britten-Norman Islanders under licence from 1975 and 44 Bo 105 helicopters from 1977, and the navy flies both types today, although how many of its own came from that line was not confirmed. It was a cheap and modest force, and an ageing one: a Bo 105C crashed near Zamboanga City on 17 August 2010, according to Wikipedia, which records two casualties.

2013–2019: AW109s and the first anti-submarine helicopters

Renewal began with the AgustaWestland AW109E Power: Naval News says five were delivered between 2013 and 2015, and Wikipedia says two carry machine-gun pods. The bigger step was anti-submarine warfare. In March 2016 the Department of National Defense signed for two AW159 Wildcats; Wikipedia gives €100 million, Naval News USD 101 million and later PHP 5.4 billion. They arrived in May 2019 and were inducted on 24 June 2019, the navy’s 121st anniversary, with squadron MH-40 at Danilo Atienza Air Base, Sangley Point. They were bought for the two José Rizal-class frigates then building in South Korea, and they made the Philippines only the second export customer for the type, after South Korea. With a Thales dipping sonar and Blue Shark torpedoes, they gave the navy a helicopter that could hunt submarines.

2017–2022: gifts from Japan and the United States

Fixed-wing patrol came as gifts. Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force trained six navy pilots on the TC-90 King Air at Tokushima from November 2016 and transferred two aircraft free of charge in March 2017, with three more planned; Wikipedia’s equipment list counts five King Airs, four of them fitted for surveillance. Under the US Maritime Security Initiative eight ScanEagle drones were handed over on 25 November 2020 to the 71st Maritime Unmanned Aerial Reconnaissance Squadron at Naval Station Leovigildo Gantioqui in Zambales, and on 10 February 2022 the US Embassy handed four new Cessna 172 trainers to the “Philippine Naval Air Wing” at Sangley Point, bought with PHP 298.1 million of US military financing. The good side was quick capability at little cost to Manila; the other side was a fleet of donated, mixed and mostly light types.

2023–2026: Wildcats over the West Philippine Sea

The Wildcats went to sea in earnest in 2023. In June Naval News reported the first full-mission deployment of a Wildcat with BRP Antonio Luna on a West Philippine Sea patrol — the Philippine name for its exclusive economic zone in waters that China also claims. On 9 September 2025 an AW159 fired the navy’s first air-launched Spike NLOS missile off San Antonio, Zambales, and the navy said it “struck and destroyed its designated target with accuracy”. In May 2026 an AW109 flew with Antonio Luna in a multinational maritime cooperative activity near Scarborough Shoal, which China calls Huangyan Dao and also claims. Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro wants six more Wildcats for the Miguel Malvar-class frigates; the terms of reference were approved on 24 June 2025 at PHP 42.29 billion, and Leonardo was reported close to a contract in October 2025.

What is planned, and what is still missing

The plan the Naval Air Wing published at its anniversary in October 2023 is long: R44 training helicopters and a camera upgrade for the King Airs in 2025, the six Wildcats in 2026, three anti-submarine-capable maritime patrol aircraft and multi-purpose amphibians in 2027, eight surplus C-12 Hurons, a medium amphibious helicopter and armed drones. By October 2026 none of the big items had been confirmed delivered in the sources reached, and no contract for the six Wildcats was found on a primary source. Wikipedia now calls the arm the Air Warfare Force, with fixed-wing, helicopter and drone groups numbered 30, 40 and 70, while Naval News still used “Naval Air Wing” in September 2025; when the name changed was not confirmed. What is missing is the core of a naval air arm: a real patrol aircraft and enough frigate helicopters to cover more than two ships.