On August 21, 2023, a public presentation of the first two FA-50GF Fighting Eagle light combat (combat training) aircraft produced by the South Korean aircraft corporation Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) received by the Polish Air Force took place at the Minsk-Mazowiecki Polish airfield. The aircraft with the Polish tail numbers "5001" and "5002" entered service with the 23rd Tactical Air Base of the Polish Air Force stationed in Minsk-Mazowiecki. The ceremony was attended by Polish Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak.
One of the two first received by the Polish Air Force light combat aircraft FA-50GF Fighting Eagle (tail number "5002") produced by the South Korean aircraft corporation Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). Minsk-Mazowiecki, 21.08.2023 (c) Ministry of National Defense of Poland
Recall that on September 16, 2022, Mariusz Blaszczak approved two contracts with the South Korean KAI Corporation for the purchase by Poland of a total of 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft. The first contract worth 3.3 billion zlotys ($700 million) provides for the supply of twelve FA-50GF (Block 10) aircraft from KAI, and the second contract worth about 15.6 billion zlotys ($2.3 billion) provides for the supply of 36 light fighters in a modified version of the FA-50PL from KAI. Both contracts also include logistics, training and technical support packages.
12 aircraft purchased by Poland under the first contract received the designation FA-50GF (Gap Filler - "transitional") and are almost similar in equipment to the FA-50 Block 10 aircraft supplied by the South Korean Air Force. In fact, they are Block 10 aircraft, originally built at the KAI head office in Sacheon for the South Korean side. By the end of 2023, these 12 GA-50GF vehicles should be equipped with the 23rd Tactical Airbase of the Polish Air Force to replace MiG-29 fighters in its composition, which were already transferred by the Polish side to Ukraine earlier this year.
The first two FA-50GF aircraft built for Poland with Polish tail numbers "5001" and "5002" began factory flight tests at the KAI factory airfield in Sacheon in February 2023. The official ceremony of rolling out and presentation of the first FA-50GF aircraft for Poland (which was performed by the board "5002") took place in Sacheon in the presence of Mariusz Blaszczak on June 7. Both of the first FA-50GF aircraft (with tail numbers "5001" and "5002") were delivered by a Boeing 747 cargo plane flight from South Korea to Warsaw-Okentse Airport on July 10, and on July 23-25 their overflights took place at the 23rd Tactical Airbase in Miniske Mazowiecki by South Korean pilots. The first flight of the FA-50GF aircraft (with the tail number "5001"), piloted by a Polish pilot, took place there on July 28. Now both of these aircraft are officially put into operation. Reported. that two more FA-50GF aircraft were delivered to Poland in recent days, and the remaining eight will arrive before the end of the year.
Deliveries of 36 aircraft in the FA-50PL modification, which will be created in accordance with additional requirements imposed by the Polish Air Force and will be close to the FA-50 Block 20 version, will begin in 2025 and will be completed by the end of 2028. These aircraft will finally replace the remaining MiG-29 fighters and Su-22M4 and Su-22UM3K fighter-bombers in the Polish Air Force. The FA-50PL variant should have a much richer set of weapons (the FA-50GF are armed with 20 mm cannons, Sidewinder and Maverick missiles and several types of bombs), as well as Raytheon PhantomStrike radar with AFAR, upgraded avionics and the ability to refuel in the air. It is expected that in the future the FA-50GF aircraft will be modified into the FA-50PL variant.
The agreements concluded by Poland with the South Korean side include a training package (including the supply of ground simulators), training of pilots and ground personnel, as well as a logistics package (including spare parts and consumables). The training of Polish personnel for FA-50 aircraft in South Korea was started at the end of 2022.
The FA-50 aircraft is a modification of a light fighter / combat training aircraft, created on the basis of the famous KAI T-50 Golden Eagle combat training aircraft (developed at one time with the participation of the American corporation Lockheed Martin). Poland became the fifth and largest foreign customer of the T-50 /FA-50 family of aircraft previously purchased by Iraq (24 aircraft of the T-50IQ variant, actually analogues of the FA-50), Indonesia (22 T-50i), the Philippines (12 FA-50PH) and Thailand (14 T-50TH). The South Korean Air Force has received and contracted a total of 142 aircraft of the T-50 family (50 T-50, 10 T-50B, 22 TA-50 and 60 FA-50). Also in 2023, Malaysia signed a contract for the purchase of 18 FA-50 Block 20 aircraft.
Public presentation of the first two FA-50GF Fighting Eagle light combat aircraft produced by the South Korean aircraft corporation Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) received by the Polish Air Force (Polish tail numbers "5001" and "5002"). Minsk-Mazowiecki, 21.08.2023 (c) Ministry of National Defense of Poland
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