Sending of fighter jets to Pitch Black 2024 not related to WPS issue —PAF

The deployment of Philippine fighter jets to Pitch Black Exercises 2024 in Darwin, Australia is not related to the ongoing tension in the West Philippine Sea, according to Chino Gaston's report on Unang Balita on Monday, citing a Philippine Air Force (PAF) official.

"Sa mga nangyayari ngayong issue o concern lalo na sa ating mga rehiyon, ito ay hindi directly involved doon sa issue na ito dahil wala pa man iyon ay matagal na tayong lumalahok sa mga ganitong exercise," said Lieutenant Colonel Mario Mendoza, a member of the PAF contingent.

"Nagkataon lamang na ngayong taon na ito o iterasyon ng Pitch Black 2024, naglayon na tayo na sumali na kasama ang ating mga eroplano," he added.

(This is not directly involved with what's happening in the region because we have been joining these kinds of exercises even before that. It just so happened that during this year's iteration of Pitch Black we joined together with our aircraft.)

During the previous iterations of Pitch Black, the PAF deployed personnel to participate as observers only. 

The exercises will include interoperability flights, night flying, simulated aerial attacks and interdiction with unidentified aircraft entering the country's airspace.

Twenty-one nations will join the exercises, which is set to commence on Monday, July 8, 2024.

Fighters jets from the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, France and Germany have arrived for the exercises while those from the Philippines were still on their way as of time of the report.

Some 200 Philippine Air Force (PAF) personnel will be part of the exercises.

Exercise Pitch Black is a biennial "multi-national large force employment exercise" that takes place over three weeks. —KBK, GMA Integrated News