Philippine Air Force bares new teeth vs insurgency

MANILA, Philippines — Six new turboprop warplanes adorned with vintage World War II-era snarling shark face nose artwork will soon be providing close air support for the military’s counterinsurgency missions.

The Super Tucano A-29B made by Brazil’s Embraer SA will be the latest fixed-wing light attack aircraft of the 15th Strike Wing—the Philippine Air Force (PAF) unit responsible for supporting ground attack operations—after plans to acquire them under the previous administration had failed.

The control of the 15th Strike Wing, which used to be supervised by the PAF chief, is now under the Air Combat Command (ACC), which was formed recently to focus on counterinsurgency operations.

The PAF is keeping the tradition of the popular nose art, which are meant to intimidate adversaries, in a respectful nod to the distinct trademark of the 15th Strike Wing’s aging fixed-wing aircraft in the fleet—the North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco and Aermacchi SF-260TP armed trainers.

“The Super Tucanos will be fulfilling the precious role of the OV-10 aircraft, that is to drop bombs. And it also has machine guns,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told Inquirer.net.

Vietnam War vintage

The Philippines is one of the last operators of the legendary Vietnam War vintage Bronco, which the PAF used to bombard Islamic State-linked militants during the Marawi siege in 2017.

“The Super Tucanos are crucial because the OV-10s are for decommissioning. It will complement the FA-50 which we used in Marawi City. Meaning, we can have support planes in different parts of the country at any one time,” Lorenzana said.

The 5th Fighter Wing’s FA-50 fighter jets were the PAF’s most expensive and most capable combat aircraft in flushing out the militants in Marawi.

On Oct. 6, 2017, a few days before the six-month siege ended, Embraer was selected by the Philippine government to produce six light attack and advanced training aircraft for P4.698 billion.

With a price tag of P18.9 billion for 12 FA-50s, the cost of one jet was twice that of the Super Tucano.

The six planes, flown in by Brazilian pilots, recently landed in two separate flights at Clark Air Base in Pampanga. The 20-day journey of the first four planes started in Sao Paolo, Brazil, in late August and made several refueling stops which included Canary Islands, Portugal, Malta, Spain, Egypt, Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, India, Thailand and Vietnam.

Embraer bills the Super Tucanos for close air support, light attack, surveillance, air-to-air interception and counterinsurgency roles.

—ARMED FORCES OF THE PHILIPPINES PHOTO

SKY SHARKS Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and top military officials (top photo) inspect one of the six Brazilian-made Super Tucano A-29B aircraft approved for purchase by the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in 2017 and recently delivered to the country. The light attack planes are expected to be used mainly for counterinsurgency missions, their arrival marking a rare bright spot in the PAF’s reputation as a longtime laggard compared to its regional counterparts. —PHOTOS BY EFRAIN NOEL MOROTA AVIATION PHOTOGRAPHY

Low cost, efficiency

At least 14 armed forces on three continents, including Columbia’s and Afghanistan’s, are using them for their low cost and efficiency.

Embraer says the plane typically costs $1,000 per hour to fly.

The two-seater planes have a maximum speed of 590 kilometers per hour, a flight ceiling of 10,668 meters and a range of 3,055 kilometers. They can take off and land on unpaved runways and are equipped with modern cockpit and multifunction displays and are fully capable of night operation.

They can be fitted with a variety of weapons, including .50-caliber machine guns, precision guided bombs, air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles. They are also capable of electro-optical infrared and laser-firing technology.

Under the contract with Embraer, the PAF will be provided with ammunition, spares, logistics and training.

One retired Air Force officer who was involved in the procurement of the planes said these have been combat-tested and were well-suited for the military’s close air support requirement in fighting insurgents.

The planes are also capable of performing limited reconnaissance patrols in the West Philippine Sea where the country is facing Chinese incursions.

What’s next?

The PAF used to be one of the finest in Asia, but its air assets declined over time without replacements because of funding problems and the painstaking process involved in the country’s military modernization program.

It is unclear whether the Philippines will buy additional fixed-wing light attack aircraft in the near future.

One senior official familiar with the military upgrade program said money for that was limited so what the Armed Forces did was to fund specific requirements according to their priority.

6 new attack helicopters

The 15th Strike Wing is also planning to acquire six new attack helicopters.

Lorenzana had said that due to budget constraints, they would be going for the Turkish-made Atak T-129 helicopters instead of the US-made competitors Bell AH-1Z Vipers, Boeing AH-64E Apache and the Sikorsky S-70i armed Black Hawk.

He said the Philippine government had allocated only P13 billion, which could buy just one or two of the American choppers.

If the helicopter deal materializes, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) will provide six T-129 Atak helicopters to the PAF for about that same amount. The acquisition, however, is reportedly being snagged by Turkey’s problems in obtaining an export license from the United States.

Turkey has drawn the ire of the United States after it purchased Russia’s S-400 missile system, which could pose a security risk and was said to be incompatible with the Nato system.

In 2018, TAI signed a $1.5-billion deal with Pakistan for 30 T-129 helicopters but the company failed to obtain US export licenses. The same thing could happen to the PAF’s plan.

If everything goes smoothly, these Turkish helicopters would boost the 15th Strike Wing’s eight AgustaWestland 109E attack helicopters, which were acquired in 2015 for P3.4 billion, and several McDonnell Douglas (MD)-520MG attack helicopters.

South Korea choppers

On Friday, Lorenzana announced that the Department of National Defense was interested in getting South Korea’s retired MD-500 Defender helicopters along with the Bell UH-1H, which is mainly used for cargo and air transport.

The MD-500 choppers could end up with the 15th Strike Wing or the Philippine Army’s Aviation Regiment.

FLYING SOON Bell AH-1S Cobra helicopters donated by Jordan government to the Philippine Air Force are now configured for TOW and Spike NLOS Missiles and will soon be ready for frontline duties. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

In late 2019, the PAF received two used Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters from Jordan as a donation. The Inquirer has learned that these had been configured to fire TOW (tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided) and Spike NLOS (nonline of sight) antitank missiles and will soon be ready for combat.

With the prospect of a growing demand for air power in counterinsurgency missions, the PAF leadership made a few organizational changes in June.

Significant change

The ACC is now in charge of tactical air and special operations missions. The 15th Strike Wing will work closely with the 710th Special Operations Wing, the PAF’s elite rapid deployment force.

The 15th Strike Wing remains at its headquarters at Sangley Point, Cavite province, but will eventually relocate to Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro City.

“This significant change is our definitive response to ensure that our units are dependable and functional to support the increasing combat demands of the Armed Forces,” Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Allen Paredes said in June.

“It is our way of building a robust combat posture and sustaining the gains of our continuing ISO (internal security operations) campaign plans against the enemies of the state,” he said.