By Kris Osborn, President, Warrior
Osprey Tiltrotor aircraft and F-35B Joint Strike Fighters are taking off from the deck of the USS America in the Philippine Sea in a show of amphibious warship strength off the coast of the Philippines. Such a development, which places massive maritime air power within range of defending the Philippines, is not surprising given recent Chinese provocations against Philippine vessels and the fast-paced US effort to increase its military presence in the Philippines,
In fact, US warships may escort Philippine Navy vessels in coming weeks to add an additional, sought after level of security given the longstanding and now strengthening US-Philippine military cooperation. The two countries have had an ironclad mutual support treaty for many years, and in recent months the US military has been adding several new bases on the Philippines to stage operations, place assets and expand US-Philippine military-to-military operational cooperation.
Having the USS America in the Philippine Sea is quite significant for many reasons, perhaps the most of which is that it bring 5th-generation US Navy air power within range of defending the Philippines, protecting the airspace in the region and even striking mainland China or PLA Navy forces should that be required. There are roughly 1,800 nautical miles between the Philippines and mainland China, so if the USS America were positioned in between the two countries, an F-35B would be within range of operating near or over either country. An F-35B operates with range of 1,000-to-1,300 miles, and could be well positioned anywhere in the Philippine Sea with refueling. With refueling, F-35Bs could establish a free-reign air supremacy zone in the Pacific skies above the Philippine Sea. As part of this, the USS America could help erect a 5th-generation “wall” of F-35Bs accros the Philippine coastline, because a single big-deck amphib can deploy with as many as 20 F-35Bs.
F-35 Wall of Protection in the Philippine Sea
Given that F-35s are networked with one another through a secure and high-speed datalink called MADL, Multi-Function Advanced Datalink, threat details could quickly be shared across a wide operational envelope protecting the airspace, ocean and coastline along the Philippines. It would also make sense for the US to base some F-35As in the Philippines as well, given that the US Navy operates with a large 5th-generation air power advantage over China. The PLA Air Force operates the J-20 5th-generation stealth aircraft, however the plane cannot operate from the ocean and must take off and land on from land. The Chinese carrier-launched J-31 5th-gen stealth aircraft only exists in the form of a few prototypes, so the US Navy operates with a massive 5th-gen air advantage in the Pacific. If makes sense therefore, that an F-35B-armed big-deck amphib would operate in the area, as any Chinese amphibious assault upon the Philippines would have little chance of success without air supremacy or any kind of air support. The first two America-class amphibs, the USS America and the USS Tripoli, are specifically optimized for air power and are not built with a well-deck for traditional amphibious assault operations. These ships, which have been specifically re-configured to accommodate the F-35B, project amphibious air power in a way that is unprecedented.
Osprey Brings Threat of Marine Corps Air Attack
This includes the high-speed and heavily upgraded Osprey tiltrotor aircraft which can travel hundreds of miles from ship to shore in support of amphibious operations. Having Ospreys within range of the Philippine coastline could prove critical in the event of a PLA amphibious attack as the could bring Marines, weapons, supplies and cargo from ship to shore in support of Philippine defenses. Osprey’s in particular can operate at speeds greater than 220 knots and travel with a combat radius of 450 nautical miles, so they are positioned for what the Marine Corps calls Mounted Vertical Maneuver. This means the Marines, weapons and equipment can be dropped in behind enemy lines for reconnaissance and attack missions at high speeds. Finally, in the event that PLA forces were somehow able to succeed in gaining a land foothold on the Philippine shores, US Navy amphibious warfare assets might be needed to attack and liberate occupied Philippine territory.
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization and Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
