“Tagbanua” – Philippine made Large Landing Craft Utility Overview

The Philippines Landing Craft Utility or LCU an amphibious boat used to transport troops to shore. The boat is capable of transporting wheeled vehicles, troops from the amphibious vessel to the piers and beachheads.

Philippines has quite number of LCU, some are obviously made from other countries. The 2 large LCU vessels named as “Manobo” (AT-297) and the “Tagbanua” (AT-296) both produced here in the Philippines.

“Tagbanua” as the largest naval vessel made in the Philippines, this was named after the tribe residing in Palawan (Tagbanua Tribe).

The vessel has a total displacement of 5760 tons with 168ft in length, Beam 32 ft, Draft 5 ft, Depth 8 ft. the boat is a Diesel powered marine engine Caterpillar, its maximum speed is up to 28kmh at 12 knots cruising speed. Its total capacity is up to 110 tons at 250sqm space that can transport up to 200 passengers.

The production of “Tagbanua” proved that Filipino has the ability to produce its own equipment and not relying on imported materials.