The La Paz Sand Dunes on the northern coast of Luzon made for an unusual battlefield on May 4, 2026, but the mission was unmistakable. In the first image, Pfc. Griffin Clemen of 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Mobile Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, works the M240B during the Counter Landing Live Fire Exercise North (CLLFX-N) as part of Exercise Balikatan 2026. In the second, his battalion mate Pfc. Brian Shultz takes cover behind an M250 in the dunes alongside Philippine forces during the same drill.
CLLFX-N was the Army-led centerpiece of Balikatan 2026, bringing together U.S. and Philippine ground, air, and maritime assets to execute a multi-domain defense of the northern Luzon coastline against a simulated amphibious landing. The exercise incorporated forces from four nations: U.S. Army elements from the 25th Infantry Division's Division Artillery, 3rd Mobile Brigade, and 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, Marines from the 3rd Littoral Combat Team, Philippine Army and Marine Corps units, Japan's 2nd Amphibious Rapid Deployment Regiment, and Canada's 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.
The live-fire sequence ran from the maritime deep fight inward, opening with U.S. F-16s and Philippine strike aircraft engaging offshore targets, followed by HIMARS strikes, AH-64 Apache attack runs, and finally infantry units pushing into battle positions in the dunes with Javelins, mortars, armor, and small arms.
Photo: Sgt. Nathan Arellano Tlaczani, U.S. Army.
