An FA-50 fighter jet belonging to the Philippine Air Force (PAF) went missing early on Tuesday, failing to reach its target area. The incident has been recorded as the most serious event to date involving the country’s South Korean-made supersonic aircraft.
PAF spokesperson Colonel Maria Consuelo Castillo stated, “Shortly after midnight on 4th March 2025, an FA-50 fighter jet went missing during a tactical night operation.” It was reported that the aircraft had two pilots on board and was supposed to land at Mactan Air Base in Cebu.
The jet lost communication with one of the other planes just minutes before reaching the target area. Castillo said, “The other aircraft repeatedly attempted to re-establish contact with the missing jet until they returned to Mactan in Cebu.” The total number of planes accompanying the missing FA-50 has not yet been disclosed.
As search and rescue operations continue intensively, Castillo added, “Our primary concern right now is the safe return of our flight crew. We still hope to recover the FA-50 and remain optimistic that they are safe.”
Following the retirement of some fighter jets in 2005, the PAF currently has 11 FA-50 jets in its inventory. All FA-50 jets were purchased from Korea Aerospace Industries for 18.9 billion pesos during the administration of Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino Jr.
In 2015, a T-50 Golden Eagle fighter jet, similar to the FA-50, crashed, resulting in the deaths of two Indonesian pilots. The FA-50 and T-50 are known as variants of the same military aircraft produced by Korea Aerospace Industries. At the time, former military public relations chief Colonel Harold Cabunoc remarked, “Such accidents happen, but facing these dangers to serve our country is our duty.”
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