The Philippine Air Force (PAF) said on Tuesday it plans to lift the administrative grounding of its FA-50 fleet soon, as the comprehensive inspection of the fighter jets is nearing completion.
“As for the lifting of the administrative grounding of our aircraft, we are almost finished with our comprehensive inspection of the FA-50 fleet. And we are committed to bringing this fleet back to full operational status very soon, hopefully within this week,” PAF spokesperson Col. Ma. Consuelo Castillo told reporters in a press conference at Camp Aguinaldo.
“So we can get back to our essential missions of maritime patrol, airspace security, and support to ongoing focus military operations,” Castillo added.
The PAF decided to ground its FA-50s pending an investigation into the incident that involved one of the planes during a tactical night operation in Bukidnon on 4 March.
Castillo they were awaiting the results of the voice and data extraction which was conducted overseas.
“Our investigating team is also conducting interviews of all the personnel involved, not only on the air but also on the ground,” she said.
“We are committed to coming up with a swift, impartial, and thorough investigation regarding this so that we can assure that our future operations are safe for everyone,” she added.
Castillo said the temporary grounding of the FA-50 fleet did not affect the PAF’s operations, as maritime patrols across the archipelago continued as usual.
“Regarding the maritime patrols, it was the usual patrols the Philippine Air Force’s platforms are involved in. As I’ve said the maritime patrol capability of the Air Force does not rest only on one platform, but involves around a lot of different aircraft,” she said.
Castillo said the PAF conducted a maritime patrol utilizing 829 Bravo Super Tucano aircraft over strategic waters such as the Surigao Strait, the East of Samar, and San Bernadino Strait.
“The mission was executed under the operational control of the Visayas Command to monitor and secure the maritime areas within Philippine jurisdiction,” Castillo said.