Air Force spokesperson Col. Enrico Camaya said the turnover of the jets was historic since they are the first of their kind since the PAF’s old jets were decommissioned in 2015.
The two FA-50 Golden Eagle jets comprise the first delivery of the 12 such aircraft costing P18.9 billion bought by the government from the Korean Aerospace Inc. (KAI) under the military’s modernization program, and is the biggest military upgrade so far. The rest are set to be delivered within the next two years, Camaya said.
The PAF said the jets underwent technical inspection and acceptance flights before their turnover. The jets would be flown in by Korean pilots, although three PAF pilots have already been trained in South Korean in operating the fighter jets.
Department of National Defense (DND) public affairs chief Arsenio Andolog said the jets would be stationed at the Subic Freeport facing the South China Sea where the Philippines is engaged in a territorial row with China, some 200 kilometers from a shoal controlled by Chinese forces.
The FA-50 Golden Eagle jets belong to a family of South Korean supersonic advanced trainers and multirole light fighters developed by KAI with the American aerospace company Lockheed Martin.
The website airforce-technolgy.com said “the FA-50, which is based on the T-50 supersonic advanced trainer platform, is offered as an affordable and efficient supersonic advanced light attack platform.”
“The combat aircraft is intended to meet the light fighter requirements of air forces around the world. The advanced radar provides the FA-50 with detection capability which is similar to that of the F-16 fighter,” it said.
The FA-50 measures 13.14m in length, 9.45m in width and 4.82m in height. The empty weight of the aircraft is 6.47t. The aircraft can take-off with a maximum gross weight of 12.3t.
The website said the tandem glass cockpit of the FA-50 can carry two crew members and is equipped with wide field of view head-up display (HUD), colour multifunction displays (MFDs), digital engine instrumentation, Hands On Throttle-And-Stick (HOTAS), integrated up-front controls and zero-zero ejection seat.
“The wide range of weapon systems aboard the FA-50 allows it to counter multiple threats.”
The flight control systems include digital fly-by-wire, active stick, electrical emergency power unit, digital breakby- wire and triple redundant electrical system, it also noted.
The cockpit also integrates an On-Board Oxygen Generation Systems (OBOGS). The Night Vision Imaging System (NVIS) aboard the aircraft ensures mission capability during day and night, it added.
It also said the aircraft is also mounted with an internal, three-barrel 20mm Gatling gun and LAU-3/A 19-tube 2.75” rocket launcher for firing Folding-Fin Aerial Rockets (FFAR). The wide range of weapon systems aboard the FA-50 allows it to counter multiple threats in today’s complex battlefield scenario.
