BRP Datu Marikudo ( PS - 23 ) BRP " Datu Marikudo " ( PS - 23 ) was a of the Philippine Navy . She was originally built as USS " PCE ( R ) - 853 " , a for the United States Navy during World War II . She was renamed USS " Amherst " ( PCE ( R ) - 853 ) on 15 February 1956 . In February 1970 , " Amherst " was decommissioned and transferred to South Vietnam for service in the Republic of Vietnam Navy as RVNS " Van Kiep II " ( HQ - 14 ) . She remained in South Vietnamese service until the collapse of that country in 1975 . " Van Kiep II " was one of several ships that fled from South Vietnam to the Philippines . She was then commissioned into the Philippine Navy in 5 April 1976 and named in honor of Datu Marikudo . Along with other World War II - era ships of the Philippine Navy , " Datu Marikudo " was considered as one of the oldest active fighting ships in the world until her decommissioning . History . Commissioned in the US Navy as the USS " PCER - 853 " in 1944 , she was assigned in the Pacific theatre of operations , first in support of landing operations in Leyte and Lingayen in the Philippine Islands . She was also assigned to convoy escort duties , rescue operations , and other combat support duties in Okinawa area . PCER - 853 entered the Navy yard in Hawaii and was still undergoing overhaul when Japan capitulated . In September 1945 , the vessel steamed to the east coast of the United States and was placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Green Cove Springs , Fla . In December 1947 , PCER - 853 served as a training vessel for Naval Reserve personnel in the 4th Naval District . The ship was placed back in active status on 28 November 1950 and carried out training duty at Philadelphia for the next 10 years . On 15 February 1956 , the ship was renamed the " Amherst " ( PCER - 853 ) . On 6 February 1970 , Amherst was placed in an " out of service , special " status for pre - transfer overhaul . Her name was struck from the Navy list on 3 June 1970 . She was then transferred to the Republic of Vietnam on 1970 . She served the Vietnamese Navy as " Van Kiep II " ( HQ - 14 ) up until her escape to the Philippines in 1975 , together with other South Vietnamese Navy ships and their respective crew . She was commissioned into the Philippine Navy and was renamed RPS ( now BRP ) " Datu Marikudo " ( PS - 23 ) . Her last assignment was with the Patrol Force of the Philippine Fleet , She was programmed to have major repair as of 2007 , but on 09 December 2010 she was decommissioned after she was found to be beyond economical repair and will be sold as scrap . Her equipment was stripped as spare for her operational sisterships . Technical details . Originally the ship was armed with one 3 " / 50 caliber dual purpose gun , two single Bofors 40 mm guns , six 20 mm guns , 1 Hedgehog depth charge projector , four depth charge projectiles ( K - guns ) and two depth charge racks . The same configuration applies up until the late 1980s when the Philippine Navy removed most of her old anti - submarine weapons and systems , and instead mounted one 40 mm gun mount , four 20 mm Oerlikon Mk10 guns , and four 12 . 7 mm general purpose machine guns . This made her lighter and ideal for surface patrols , but losing her limited but dated anti - submarine warfare capability . The ship is powered by two GM 12 - 278A diesel engines similar to her sister ships , with a combined rating of around driving two propellers . The main engines can propel the 914 tons ( full load ) ship to a maximum speed of around . There are slight difference between the BRP " Datu Marikudo " as compared to some of her sister ships in the Philippine Navy , since her previous configuration was as a patrol craft escort , while there are others who were originally configured as minesweepers .