South Korea and Poland will recognise each other’s airworthiness certifications for military aircraft, as Warsaw’s fleet of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50s grows to 12.
Poland is the fifth country globally to recognise South Korea’s airworthiness certification, says Seoul’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).
The other countries that recognise South Korean certification are Australia, France, Spain, and the USA.
The recognition comes after mutual inspections between the two countries.
In late 2022, South Korea had a major breakthrough in the European defence market when Poland announced that it would acquire 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft.
The first 12 examples are in an FA-50GF (“Gap Filler”) standard, which is similar to FA-50s operated by the Republic of Korea Air Force.
TUZIN! Rodzina 1️⃣2️⃣ samolotów #FA50 jest już komplecie, w 23 Bazie Lotnictwa Taktycznego! pic.twitter.com/jWz2Fl7BNb
— Dowództwo Generalne (@DGeneralneRSZ) December 30, 2023
Deliveries of this tranche have been completed, with the Polish air force posting a video of all 12 aircraft on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
The subsequent 36 aircraft will be in an FA-50PL configuration, with deliveries to run from 2025-2028.
The DAPA says that Warsaw’s recognition of certification credentials will open the door to additional aircraft sales in Europe. Media reports have also suggested that Poland might be interested in KAI’s developmental KF-21, which is still undergoing testing in South Korea.
