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For the first time, the US Army has deployed the Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile to Luzon, Philippines, amid the ongoing Salaknib exercise.

The weapon, considered a key piece of equipment for US deterrence, arrived on April 11 after a 15-hour flight covering over 8,000 miles from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state aboard a C-17 Globemaster cargo aircraft. This marks its first operational deployment since the inception of the new system.

The arrival of the MRC weapon was officially announced on April 15 by US Army Pacific, which said, “This landmark deployment marks a significant milestone for the new capability while enhancing interoperability, readiness and defense capabilities in coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines.”

Brig. Gen. Bernard Harrington, leader of the 1st Multi-Domain Task Force, added, “This creates several new collaboration opportunities for our bilateral training and readiness.”

More on the MRC:
The development of the MRC weapon was assigned to the Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office in July 2020. Tasked with developing a missile that could bridge the gap in striking targets 300 to 1200 miles away, the team chose Lockheed Martin to build the prototype, leveraging technology from existing naval missiles. The full system includes a vertical launch setup and utilizes the Navy’s Raytheon-built Standard Missile-6 and Tomahawk missiles, both integral to expanding the Army’s long-range precision fire capabilities.