Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has formally rolled out the first FA-50 light combat aircraft, destined for the Polish air force service. The single-engined fighter, originally unveiled in March, was rolled out during a ceremony at KAI’s Sacheon factory, and features a canopy painted under its fuselage. The aircraft is part of a 48-aircraft acquisition announced in late 2022, with the first 12 examples delivered in an FA-50GF standard and the subsequent 36 aircraft in an FA-50PL configuration. The FA-50PL will feature an air-to-air refuelling capability and Raytheon’s PhantomStrike active electronically scanned array radar. In May, the US government cleared the sale of 34 Lockheed Martin AN/AAQ-33 Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods to equip Poland’s FA-50 fleet. In addition to air-to-air and air-to-ground combat missions, the FA-50s will also be tasked with training Polish pilots for the Lockheed F-35, of which Warsaw is acquiring 32. The cost of this acquisition is $705 million.
“Thanks to the speedy release of FA-50GF, Poland is now able to equip itself with more advanced military strategies and realise the military modernisation,” says Polish defence minister Mariusz Blaszczak.
