The U.S. military has relocated its Typhon missile launchers—capable of firing multipurpose missiles over distances of thousands of kilometers—from Laoag Airfield in the Philippines to another site on Luzon Island, according to a senior The Typhon system includes Tomahawk cruise missiles, which can strike targets in both China and Russia from the Philippines. It is also equipped with SM-6 missiles, designed to engage air or sea targets at ranges exceeding 200 km (165 miles).
The official noted that the redeployment is part of efforts to assess the system’s mobility, focusing on how quickly and effectively the missile battery can be repositioned to a new firing location. This enhanced mobility is considered critical for improving the system’s survivability in the event of a conflict.
This enhanced mobility is considered critical for improving the system’s survivability in the event of a conflict. Satellite images showed the batteries and their associated gear being loaded onto C-17 transport aircraft at Laoag International Airport in recent weeks, said Jeffrey Lewis of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. The white rain canopies that had covered the Typhon equipment were also removed, according to the images, seen by Reuters and not previously reported.
The Typhon system is part of a U.S. drive to amass a variety of anti-ship weapons in Asia.
Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), which oversees U.S. forces in the region, told Reuters the Typhons have been “relocated within the Philippines”. Both INDOPACOM and the Philippine government declined to give the specific location to which the batteries were moved.
“The U.S. government has coordinated closely with the Philippine government on every aspect of the MRC deployment, including the location,” said Commander Matthew Comer of INDOPACOM, referring to the Typhon by the initials of its formal name, Mid Range Capability.
He added that the relocation was not an indication that the batteries would be permanently in the Philippines.
The weapon drew sharp criticism from China when it was first deployed in April 2024 during a training exercise. In September, when the United States said it had no immediate plans to pull the Typhons out of the Philippines, China and Russia condemned the deployment as fuelling an arms race.
Typhons are relatively easy to produce – drawing on large stockpiles and designs that have been around for a decade or more – and could help the United States and its allies catch up quickly in an Indo-Pacific missile race in which China has a big lead.
While the U.S. military has not disclosed the exact number of missiles to be deployed in the Indo-Pacific region, government procurement documents reveal plans to purchase over 800 SM-6 missiles within the next five years. Additionally, the U.S. maintains an inventory of several thousand Tomahawk cruise missiles. Both missile types are manufactured by Raytheon (RTX.N).
Team BharatShakti
(With inputs from Reuters)
