ALL 12 units of the brand-new South Korean-made FA-50PH “Fighting Eagle” jet aircraft will be delivered and under Philippine Air Force control in May.
Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Brig. Gen. Resituto Padilla made this announcement during an interview late Wednesday.
“By April, FA-50PHs with tail numbers 009 and 010 will be delivered while 011 and 012 [will] be handed over this May. By that time, the PAF’s FA-50PH fleet will be completed,” he said in Filipino.
Earlier, the PAF said FA-50PHs with tail numbers 007 and 008 will be delivered to Clark Airbase in Angeles City, Pampanga on March 29.
And due to the initial good performance impressions given by the aircraft, Padilla said there is a possibility, provided they are given funding and authority by the civilian leadership, to acquire six more units of the Korea Aerospace Industries-made jet fighter.
“We are constantly evaluating the jet and so far, its performance has been good. If we will be given additional funding and authority, we might acquire six more units,” the AFP spokesperson stressed.
The jets have conducted over-flights in Visayas and Mindanao airspace and a bombing run against Maute Group lawless elements in Lanao Del Sur last February.
The PAF’s 12-plane order from Korea Aerospace Industries is worth P18.9 billion.
The FA-50PHs has a top speed of Mach 1.5 or one and a half times the speed of sound and is capable of being fitted air-to-air missiles, including the AIM-9 “Sidewinder” air-to-air and heat-seeking missiles aside from light automatic cannons.
The FA-50PHs will act as the country’s interim fighter until the Philippines get enough experience of operating fast jet assets and money to fund the acquisition of more capable fighter aircraft.
The FA-50PH design is largely derived from the F-16 “Fighting Falcon”—and they have many similarities: use of a single engine, speed, size, cost, and the range of weapons.
KAI’s previous engineering experience in license-producing the KF-16 was a starting point for the development of the FA-50PHs.
