After weeks of rumors, Poland has signed a contract with South Korea to purchase FA-50 fighter jets.
What
Known
This was reported by the Polish Ministry of Defense.The number of aircraft is not stated, but it is known that the Poles will be able to staff up to 3 squadrons of the Air Force. The first deliveries of fighter jets will begin in mid-2023.
Wicepremier @mblaszczak zatwierdził kontrakt nadostawę samolotów FA-50, które będą skonfigurowane zgodnie z wymaganiami polskich Sił Powietrznych. Umowa pozwoli wyposażyć do 3 eskadr Sił Powietrznych, a pierwsze samoloty będą w Polsce w połowie 2023 r pic.twitter.com/dainZqbQPu
– Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej ???????? (@MON_GOV_PL) July 27, 2022
For those who are not in the know
The FA-50 is a two-seat supersonic jetairplane. It was developed by the South Korean company KAI together with the American company Lockheed Martin. The program was funded 17% by KAI, 13% by Lockheed Martin and 70% by the South Korean government. Serial production of the aircraft began in 2003. The cost of one fighter is about $25,000,000.
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FA-50 armament includes air-to-air missilesAIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-120 AMRAAM, air-to-ground AGM-65 Maverick, JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) satellite-guided bombs and corrected cluster munitions.
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Source: @MON_GOV_PL