Philippine Navy puts its western command on alert as a Chinese rocket streaks over its sea outposts

The Philippine Navy's Naval Command West placed all of its units and assets on heightened alert on Monday, 9 November, as China launched a Long March 12 rocket whose flight was seen over Palawan and several Philippine-held outposts in the West Philippine Sea. The command, based in Puerto Princesa, said the step was meant to keep its forces ready and to allow any incident in its area of operations to be reported and assessed at once.

The rocket lifted off at 4:24 a.m. Manila time from the Hainan International Commercial Launch Center in Wenchang, on China's Hainan island. About nine minutes later, personnel in Puerto Princesa saw a bright, cone-shaped trail of glowing vapour with a red-orange streak crossing the sky from the north-west towards the south-east. The navy said it stayed visible for roughly a minute and a half. Observers then heard a loud blast at about 4:37 a.m., followed a minute later by two fainter sounds and a rumble, which the command assessed were probably linked to the rocket's climb through the atmosphere.

Crews at the navy's island stations reported similar sightings. Personnel at Lawak and Patag saw white luminous trails some 60 to 70 nautical miles east of their positions, while the Likas station reported a faint white light about 100 nautical miles to the north-east. At Rizal Reef, sailors followed a white trail about 80 nautical miles to the east-south-east, which they estimated at 4,500 to 5,500 feet before it vanished heading south-east. Staff at the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park station saw a bright object roughly 19 nautical miles away.

Naval Command West concluded that the display was a so-called space jellyfish, an effect produced when rocket exhaust expands at high altitude and catches sunlight while observers on the ground are still in darkness, and said such sights are common for launches before dawn or at twilight. The Inquirer reported that the display over the city and the navy's outposts had nevertheless raised concerns about the security implications of similar launches.

The alert followed a warning from the Philippine Space Agency, which had briefed government bodies before the launch on where spent stages were expected to fall. Its advisory placed the projected drop zone about 25 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa and 19 nautical miles from Tubbataha, an area disclosed through a notice to airmen. PhilSA said the fragments were not expected to hit land or populated areas but could endanger ships, aircraft and fishing boats passing through the zone, and that some pieces could float and wash up on nearby shores.

The agency also warned that the rocket's upper stages could make an uncontrolled re-entry, urged the public to report suspected debris to local authorities and cautioned against handling it because it may carry traces of toxic propellant. It called on international partners to work with the Philippines on regional protocols and capabilities to protect both space assets and people on the ground as global launch rates rise.

The navy said it had coordinated with other government agencies, coastal communities and fishermen ahead of the launch so that suspected debris, falling objects and other unusual incidents at sea or in the air would be reported quickly. It stressed the need for sustained vigilance as rocket launches in the region continue, and said it remained committed to safeguarding the country's maritime interests and the safety of communities and its own personnel.

For the Philippine Navy, the episode meant treating a Chinese commercial launch as an operational matter, with sailors at remote outposts in the West Philippine Sea doubling as observers for debris that could come down near busy fishing grounds and a protected marine park.