A Philippine Air Force FA-50 takes off during the US-Philippines joint air force military exercise dubbed 'Cope Thunder' at Basa Air Base in Pampanga on April 11, 2024. Jam Sta. Rosa, AFP/File MANILA -- The Philippine Air Force has grounded its entire FA-50 fleet after the fatal crash of its FA-50 lead-in trainer fighter jet in Bukidnon. 

PAF spokesperson Colonel Ma. Consuelo Castillo admitted the grounding will have a big impact on the military’s internal security and external defense operations. 

Nonetheless, she assured that the PAF will continue performing its mandate using its other aircraft. 

“What we do is we ensure expedited investigation. The sooner we can get the fleet out of the grounded status, the better because the sooner they can get back to their mandate of ensuring… external defense,” Castillo told reporters in a Zoom interview on Wednesday.

Missing fighter jet, crew found in Bukidnon mountain 

“We have different types of aircraft that are involved, other fixed wing aircraft for that that we can deploy,” she added. 

The PAF confirmed that the Special Forces of the Philippine Army and civilian volunteers have located the wreckage of the FA-50 aircraft that went missing past midnight on Tuesday. 

Both pilots of the aircraft with tail number “002” were found dead at the crash site in the vicinity of Mount Kalatungan. 

Castillo said there were indications that the pilots were not able to eject before the fighter jet crashed into the mountain. 

“Unfortunately, may indication na hindi nakapagbailout ang pilots,” Castillo noted. “The remains of the pilots were found but we have to await the assessment kasi may iba-ibang versions pa na lumilitaw. Iba sabi nakaupo, iba sabi thrown out of the aircraft.” 

“Based sa wreckage, the aircraft was totally wrecked and it hit the trees and timbers in the said area… Nagtumbahan po ang mga puno doon. Ridgeline siya na maraming puno,” she continued. 

The remains of both pilots have been recovered. 

HEARTFELT MESSAGE 

Castillo declined to reveal the identities of the pilots. 

ABS-CBN News learned that one of the fallen aircrew was supposed to get married on March 15th. 

His fiancée, who is also a member of the PAF, shared a heartfelt message on social media. 

“I am so proud of you, my love. You will always be in my heart,” the pilot’s fiancee said. “I love you and ‘til we meet again.” 

Castillo said the PAF will provide all the necessary support to the bereaved families and loved ones of the pilots. 

THOROUGH INVESTIGATION 

The FA-50 aircraft was providing close air support to ground troops conducting an operation against members of the New People’s Army in Barangay Iba in Cabanglasan town when it lost communication with the rest of the flight. 

“This was an AFP operation through the 403rd IB engaged with the NPA,” Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Colonel Francel Margareth Padilla confirmed. 

“This is a decisive engagement supported by air and artillery assets to neutralize the threat,” she said. 

The PAF is now conducting a thorough investigation into the crash. 

Together with investigators from South Korean manufacturer Aerospace Industries Ltd., they will look into the wreckage, aircraft maintenance records, prevailing weather during the flight and profile of the pilots. 

“’Yung history and maintenance and discrepancy records of the aircraft. Titignan din ang pilots—ano ba ang habits, mental state, observations sa kanila? Then, ang weather titingnan din, pati ang procedures. There are specific procedures for night flying, which is inherently risky,” Castillo explained. 

“If it exploded upon impact or whatever happened, it will be part of the investigation… An interplay of a lot of things need to be assessed to come up with a comprehensive investigation. Part of this is to invite ang manufacturers natin,” she added. 

The KAI supplied the 12 units of FA-50 to the PAF for P18.9 billion from 2015 to 2017. 

‘WELL-TRAINED’ 

Castillo assured that the FA-50s are capable of both day and night flight operations and that their pilots are well-trained to fly the aircraft. 

The FA-50s played a huge role in weakening enemy forces during the 2017 Marawi siege. 

The fighter jets are also being deployed to join bilateral and multilateral exercises with the Philippines’ ally and partner nations, and to patrol the West Philippine Sea. 

“Most significant wherein the roles of the FA-50 were recognized in internal security operations and against terrorists was during the Marawi siege. It was dubbed as a game-changer of Marawi because of its delivery of decisive firepower that weakened the enemy and gave our ground troops an advantage over the enemy,” Castillo noted. 

She went on, “Also worth noting is our Pitch Black exercise participation. It was the first time ever we were able to send our fighter aircraft in an international multilateral exercise.”

ADDITIONAL FA-50 AIRCRAFT 

Even before Tuesday’s fatal crash, the PAF had proposed purchasing an additional 12 FA-50 units from South Korea, a request under consideration at the Department of National Defense. 

“There’s a proposal of the PAF submitted to the DND under Re-Horizon 3 because our intention was to have a full squadron of FA-50s, consisting of 24 aircraft,” Castillo explained. “It depends. That’s just a proposal from our end but if it’s going to happen, it will depend on DND.”

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