Troops from the Philippine Army and Australian Army held a joint live fire exercise at the Combat Readiness Training Area in Fort Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija on Wednesday.
The drill was part of this year's Amphibious Land Operation (ALON) exercises between the Philippines and Australia, United States, and Canada. which started on August 15 and will culminate on August 29.
More than 3,600 troopers are taking part in ALON 2025 that is being held across the joint operational area of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Northern Luzon Command and Western Command.
During the live drill, the Philippine Army used its self-propelled ATMOS 155mm howitzers, while the Australian Army utilized M777A2 155mm mortars and a light armored vehicle.
Other assets used in the drill were Javelin anti-tank missile launchers, MK47 grenade launchers, M2 QCB machine guns, “Blazer” 2 sniper rifles, AW50F anti-material rifles, and MAG-58 general purpose machine guns.
The Philippine Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force, utilizing both fixed and rotary-wing assets, provided close air support to the ground forces during the drill.
Somet 700 soldiers from the Philippine Army, including 300 from the 84th Infantry Battalion, are taking part in the exercises which started on August 15 and will culminate on August 29.