THE Philippine Air Force’s “comprehensive inspection” its 11 FA-50 fighter jets is almost complete and the “administrative grounding” of the aircraft might be lifted within the week, PAF spokesperson Col. Ma Consuelo Castillo said yesterday.
The grounding followed a crash on March 4 at Mt. Kalatungan in Bukidnon. Two pilots died in the mishap.
“We are committed to bringing back this fleet back to full operational status very soon. Hopefully within this week, so that we can get back to their essential missions of maritime patrol, airspace security, and support to ongoing focus military operations,” Castillo said in a press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo.
As results of the investigation on the mishap, Castillo said Air Force “awaiting results of the voice and data extraction and assessment, which was done overseas.”
“At the same time, we are also looking at all the maintenance and history records of our aircraft,” she said.
The defense department acquired 12 FA-50s for P18.9 billion, under the AFP’s modernization program, from Korea Aerospace Industries. They were delivered in batches from 2015 to 2017.
The aircraft is used primarily for external defense operations. They are also supporting operations against internal security threats, including communist rebels and terrorists.
