Another US target drone was found off the coast of the Philippines on Sunday, January 4. The US embassy in Manila has confirmed it is a drone of the US Navy but said it is a target drone used during a military exercise conducted in September 2014 in waters off Guam and within international airspace.
“The unarmed aerial target that was found off the coast of Patnanungan Islet on January 4, is an expended BQM-74E Aerial Target that was launched during naval exercise Valiant Shield 2014 which took place September 15-23 in the waters off Guam,” the US embassy said in a statement on Tuesday, January 6.
“The aerial target does not carry weapons and is not used for surveillance. The BQM-74E Aerial Target is used by surface ships and aircraft during exercises to help train our sailors in a realistic environment that provides the best possible training,” the US embassy added.
The Exercise Valiant Shield 2014 is a US-only biennial field training exercise that involved 18,000 US troops and 200 aircraft and 20 ships. It was focused on integration of joint training among US forces in areas of maritime security operations, anti-submarine, air defence and space and cyber warfighting proficiencies.
The target drones are simulated aircraft that American fighter jet pilots, for example, use as targets to shoot down during exercises.
The US Air Force and the US Navy have been using them as targets. Aircraft and ships imagine them as enemy targets and try to shoot them down with missiles or its guns.
Unlike surveillance drones, target drones are expendable “fire and forget items” intended to be destroyed in the air.
The drone found in Quezon was obviously not hit. It likely ran out of fuel, crashed into the sea, and was later washed up on Quezon Island.
“Those are expendable items. If they get lost, they don’t bother to recover it,” said Padilla.
Padilla said tides in the Pacific Ocean are capable of bringing items like drones from Guam to the Philippines.
Photo: A BQM-74E Chukar III is launched from a US Navy ship in Japan
Source: Rappler