Philippines Receives Turkish T-129 Helicopters, Pakistan Confirms U.S. Denied Export license for the Same

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) officially took delivery of the first two Turkish-made T129 Tactical Reconnaissance and Attack Helicopters (ATAK) on Wednesday.

The aircraft arrived in the Philippines last month and were subject to a technical inspection and flight tests.

Philippines had ordered six T129s built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) in 2020, in a deal that is said to be worth approximately $280 million. The Philippines is the first country abroad to use the ATAK.

TAI’s head Temel Kotil said they would complete the delivery of all helicopters within 2022, and also noted there were additional demands from the Philippines. “These are being discussed, and we have offers. Maybe we won’t sign (an agreement) here, but hopefully, we will sign it in the coming days,” he said.

The T129 is powered by LHTEC T800-4A turboshaft engines made by LHTEC, a joint venture of British Rolls Royce and U.S.-based Honeywell. Foreign companies are obligated to obtain export permits for U.S. military-grade commercial sales.

Will Pakistan buy Chinese Z-10ME Helicopters?

Kotil said they are still waiting for the export license from the U.S. to export T129s to Islamabad, which is seeking to replace its old Bell AH-1F Cobra helicopters.

At a recent press briefing, Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa said the country’s cooperation with China was increasing because the West is denying to sell military equipment. “Our military cooperation with China is growing because we are denied military equipment from the West. Many contracts that were finalized have now been cancelled… For example, we ordered T129s from Turkey. Its engine was of American origin. The U.S. denied to give third party certification,” Bajwa said.

Although Bajwa did not speak anything about buying Z-10ME helicopters, multiple reports of Pakistan cancelling the $1.5 billion deal for the 30 T129s for the Chinese-built helicopters have been doing rounds since January 2022. Pakistani military's public relations wing - the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), had denied the reports, stating that the deal had not been terminated.