Manila has signed an agreement with Stockholm for the acquisition of new fighter jets. The operation is part of the Philippine Air Force’s multi-purpose fighter purchase program, which also continues with its sights set on a possible future purchase of F-16V Viper aircraft from the US Lockheed Martin.
The aircraft contemplated now will reinforce the current Philippine fleet of a dozen FA-50PH light combat aircraft, of the South Korean firm KAI, reports the local edition of the American magazine Esquire in the piece in which it has revealed the agreement with Sweden.
The news details that the defense ministers of both countries, Carlito Galvez for the Philippines, and Pål Jonson, for Sweden, have sealed a memorandum of understanding during a meeting in the Republic of Singapore.
Earlier, at the end of May, the head of the Philippine air force, Lieutenant General Stephen Parreño, visited the facilities in Sweden of Saab, manufacturer of the fourth generation fighter jets JAS-39.