Korea Aerospace Signs $3B Contract with Poland for 48 FA-50 Fighters

Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) signed a contract to export 48 FA-50 fighter jets worth about $3 billion with the Polish Armed Forces Agency in the city of Mazowiecki on September 16.

The signing ceremony was attended by Polish President Andrzej Duda, Polish Defense Minister Marius Bwashchak, Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) Director Eom Dong-hwan, and KAI President Kang Goo -young.

“The signing of the FA-50 implementation contract is the result of the excellent international competitiveness of our weapons system and the diversified negotiation efforts of domestic defense companies,” said a DAPA statement.

After delivery, the Korean Air Force will transfer the FA-50 operational know -how to the Polish Air Force and providing education and training programs.

In consultation with Poland, Korea Aerospace Industries plans to promote the establishment of an MRO center and an international flight training school capable of comprehensive maintenance of the FA-50 in the mid- to long-term.

The production of fighters uses 200,000 to 300,000 parts per unit, and most of them are done by hand, so the economic ripple effect of this contract is highly expected. The export of one fighter is comparable to the effect of exporting 1,000 domestic midsize cars.

The contract was preceded by a visit by South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol who attended the NATO summit in June to actively promote our defense industry and spare no effort at the pan -government level.

In particular, the Black Eagles Special Flight Team (flying the T-50 jet) participated in the air show held at the Polish Air Force Base in July and directly proved the excellence of the Korean Air Force's weapon system.

The Black Eagles showed the supersonic high-level aerial acrobatics and excellent maneuverability of the T-50 series aircraft, and supported the test drive of the commander of the Polish Air Force, where the FA-50 will be deployed in the future.

After the export of the FA-50, the Korean government and companies will do their best to ensure a high level of cooperation between the two countries even at the stage of operation and maintenance of the weapon system.

With this, the implementation contract for three types of weapon systems, from the K2 tank and K9 self- propelled howitzer, to which the first implementation contract was signed last month, to the FA - 50 fighter was completed.

For FA-50, performance contracts have been signed for all the quantities specified in the general contract, and for K2 and K9, we plan to continue negotiating additional contracts for remaining quantities other than the first contract.