ORD-PABAC2-014-26 Medium Multi-Purpose Assault Weapon (MMAW) with Precision Guided Munition (PGM) Acquisition (2026) of the Philippine Army

The Philippine Army (PA) has raised a requirement for the acquisition of new Medium Multi-Purpose Assault Weapons (MMAW) with Precision Guided Munition (PGM) capabilities, which will be funded through the service's capital outlay funds from GAA for Fiscal Year 2026.

This was to provide the service with new anti-armor capabilities, which could also be used in shore and beach defense against enemy amphibious assault vehicles or landing crafts.

This specific project is the second time that the Philippine Army is purchasing guided-missile MMAW systems, as an earlier one for 5 launchers was made in 2024 and awarded to South Korea's LIG Nex1.

The AT-+K Raybolt from LIG Nex1.

Project Summary:

Medium Multi-Purpose Assault Weapon with Precision Guided Munition (2026) Acquisition Project:

Note: Edited as of 07 December 2025

* Project Number: ORD-PABAC2-014-26

* End User: Philippine Army

* Quantity: 20 launchers, 40 missiles

* Modernization Phase: Philippine Army GAA Capital Outlay for FY2026

* Project ABC: Php450,000,000.00

* Acquisition Mode: Public Bidding

* Source of Funding: Philippine Army GAA Capital Outlay Funds for FY2026

* SARO Release: N/A

* Winning Proponent: TBC

* Product for Delivery: TBC

* Contract Price: TBC

* Residual Difference (Savings): TBC

* First post by MaxDefense: 05 December 2025

* MaxDefense Searching Hashtag: #PAMMAW2024Acquisition

* Status: Public tender was opened on 04 December 2025, SOBE scheduled on 23 December 2025.

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Overview:

The Philippine Army has been pushing to acquire Medium Multi-Purpose Assault Weapons (MMAW) which was also included in the Horizon 2 phase priority acquisition.

Previously the requirement is for unguided systems, closely similar to light anti-tank weapons or recoilless rifles to replace existing old units.

But changes in priorities have pushed back the acquisition of MMAWs, with the existing RPG-7-type rocket propelled grenade launchers instead fitted with more powerful bunker busting thermobaric rounds for anti-bunker operations, as well as High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) rounds for use against light armored vehicles.

With the changes in priorities, the project was among those that were reviewed by the Philippine Army in light of the War in Ukraine, and it was now decided to revise the requirement to now use anti-tank missile systems, with fire and forget capabilities and able to actually destroy main battle tanks.

It still remains to be seen if the Philippine Army will still acquire light anti-tank/anti-bunker weapons since there have been recent interest in Saab's M4 Carl Gustaf recoilless rifles.

But it now appears that acquisition of anti-tank missile systems will be made using annual Capital Outlay allocations to the Philippine Army instead of under the modernization program, no different from any small arms/infantry weapons.Z

An earlier acquisition of the same type of weapon was publicly tendered in 2024, with South Korea's LIG Nex1 winning the tender after meeting the technical specifications and financial and documentation requirements.

The Philippine Army already gained some baclground on the Javelin missile system as they were used during recent exercises. Photo xredits to DVIDS.

Technical Requirements:

Based on the technical specifications provided by the Philippine Army, the MMAWs shall have the following:

Range: at least 2,000 meters
Caliber: maximum of 130mm
Overall Weight: maximum of 30 kilograms including launch tube assembly, missile and battery coolant, and command /control/observation launch unit

Missile Length: between 900mm to 1,300mm

Seeker: Imaging Infrared (IIR) minimum

Guidance System: Infrared Homing, Fire and Forget

Warhead: Tandem or Dual Charge, HEAT

Attack mode: Top attack with minimum engagement range of 150m, Direct Attack with minimum engagement range of 65m

Hit Probability: at least 90%

These requirements are the same as the tender back in 2024.

Possible Options:

In the public tender back in 2024, the Philippine Army found that LIG Nex1 as the winning tenderer, offering their AT-1K Raybolt anti-tank missile system.

It is unclear if there were other competitors considering the specifications were very much favorable to the Korean anti-tank system.

Not much can be said at the moment since the project back in 2024 has not yet been delivered to the Philippine Army and may take time before they can actually test the system in Philippine conditions.