PAF to buy more multi-role fighters

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) said it is still pursuing the acquisition of multi-role fighter (MRF) aircraft, despite having already procured new FA-50 fighter jets earlier this month.

- By MARTIN SADONGDONG

PAF spokesperson Col. Maria Consuelo Castillo said the proposed MRF acquisition, which falls under the Re-Horizon 3 modernization program, “is still pending.”

“It's still part of our plans because we still need more. Despite these 12 additional FA-50s, we would still be needing more fighter aircraft because we have a very wide archipelagic area to protect and monitor,” she said on Tuesday, June 17.

Last June 14, the Department of National Defense (DND) announced that it had issued a notice to proceed for the acquisition of 12 units of FA-50 Block 70 light combat aircraft from South Korean manufacturer, Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI).

The contract, signed on June 4, is worth $700 million.

The PAF also forwarded a proposal to the DND for the acquisition of muti-role fighters. The budget for the program is worth P61 billion.