BASAHIN! 468 Million US$ FIGHTER JETS ng AFP na binili ni Aquino, NAWALA?

Benigno C. Aquino III administration as recommended by the Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and affirmed by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa acquired 12 units of Korean Aerospace Industries ( KAI ) FA-50 jet aircrafts costing US$ 464-Million as among the major acquisitions of the P 170-Billion AFP Modernization Program. Many millions more were spent for munitions including missiles and bombs to hit air and land targets.

Moreover, the overpriced, unproven and limited production jet aircrafts were advertised as Multirole Fighters ( MRF ) for air defense, ground attack and reconnaissance using air-to-air, air-to-ground missiles and precision guided bombs. The original T-50 aircraft was designed as an advanced jet trainer following the LIFT concept.

"We have received so many things from America. Thank you for your generosity. What they sold us, two, only two FA-50 (fighter jets). It’s FA-50 but they never gave us the missiles and the bullets and the cannons to fight. For ceremonial lang (only)," he said.

The FA-50 jets that the President is referring to, however, did not come from the US, but were bought, brand new, from South Korea. After PRRD criticized the Korean-made aircrafts saying its just a "waste of money" because they could only be used for ceremonies, sources from the PAF leaked serious technical issues of incompatibility/integration between the FA-50's radar fire control system with the U.S. Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, and perhaps with the Maverick ground attack missiles, JDAM and precision guided bombs it was suppose to carry for the required combat missions.

The fighter jets are just a part of the other military assets bought under the Aquino administration to achieve "minimum credible defense," prompted by the looming threat of China's aggressiveness in the contested South China Sea.

However, Duterte had adopted a different stance towards China and the US, a longtime ally with whom Manila signed a defense deal in 2014.