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| South Korean F/A-50 Fighter (File Photo) |
MANILA — Philippine President Benigno Aquino vowed Monday to acquire fighter jets, air defense radar and other equipment within three years to bolster the country’s weak air force, amid a territorial dispute with China.
“I assure you that before I step down from office, our skies will be guarded by modern air assets,” he said in a speech during a visit at an air base in Clark, north of Manila. The speech was broadcast live on radio and television.
Among these are “lead-in fighters, long-range patrol aircraft, close-air-support aircraft,” as well as transport planes, attack- and multi-use helicopters, air defense radar and flight simulators.
He gave no details of the aircraft and equipment, nor the terms for their acquisition.
In January, an Aquino spokesman announced the government would buy 12 South Korean FA-50 fighter jets to be used for “training, interdiction and disaster response.”
The Philippines, a former US colony, retired the last of its US-designed F-5 fighters in 2005 and lacks air defense.
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