To match feature Security-Philippines-Pilots
Italian-made S-211 trainer jets refitted with machine guns, rockets and bombs fly over the skies during a decommissioning ceremony of the remaining five of Philippine airforce's fleet of F-5 fighter planes at an airbase in Floridablanca town of Pampanga city, north of Manila, October 1, 2005. The Philippines, a close ally of the United States, has one of the worst equipped armed forces in the Asia-Pacific region, patrolling the nation's 7,000 islands with World War Two navy boats and aircraft dating from the Vietnam War. The Philippines has been virtually defenceless after scrapping its fleet of F-5 planes due to lack of funds and shift of its defence policy to internal security, losing its pool of experienced pilots to commercial airliners. Picture taken October 1, 2005. To match feature Security-Philippines-Pilots. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco