Air Force FA-50s escort Aquino, delegation upon arrival from US

Philippine Air Force fighter jets escort President Benigno Aquino III and his delegation’s flight back from the US after attending the US-ASEAN Summit in California. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA– From the window of his plane, President Benigno Aquino III watched the country’s newest Philippine Air Force (PAF) FA-50 fighter fly beside Philippine Airlines (PR) 001 as it made its approach before landing at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

It was a sight that no one thought would see again, more than 10 years after the PAF decommissioned the last of its F-5 fighter jets, that cheers and applause broke inside the presidential plane.

“Everyone was swelling with pride,” a source told the INQUIRER when asked to describe the reaction of the Commander-in-Chief and his delegation the moment they saw the jets.

The source said Aquino congratulated Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin for being able to implement the Armed Forces modernization program of the administration.

President Aquino arrived Friday morning in Manila from the United States where he joined the special meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and United States where they tackled the volatile security situation in the region with China’s increasing aggression in the South China Sea.

READ: Aquino calls on int’l community to heed UN ruling on S. China Sea

President Benigno Aquino III gazes from his window to see the Air Force fighter jets escorting his flight back from the US. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

In a statement, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said that the FA-50 fighter jets escorted PR 001 carrying President Aquino and his official delegation “from the air space above Polillo island as the PAL Airbus 343 plane made its approach before landing at the NAIA.”

“The fighter jets took off from Clark Field Air Base. They made contact with the presidential flight at 6:37 am which eventually landed at 7:05 am,” said Coloma, who was with the President’s delegation.

The two jets were delivered by the Korea Aerospace Industries last November 2015, the first of the PAF’s 12 fighter jets acquired as part of the AFP modernization program, bringing the military back to the super sonic age.

The delivery of the remainder of the full squadron, worth P18.9 billion, will be completed in 2017. CDG

READ: Philippine Air Force welcomes 2 new fighter jets