Philippine fighter jet disappears in the southern province while fighting militants
Two pilots were on board a Philippine Air Force fighter jet that went missing during a night battle assault to help ground forces fighting insurgents in a southern province, officials said Tuesday. A large search is now underway.
During its tactical mission, the FA-50 jet lost contact with other Air Force planes around midnight on Monday, before it could reach its target area. The air force said that the other planes were able to safely return to an air base in the middle of Cebu province, but they wouldn’t say anything else for security reasons.
A military source from the Philippines told The Associated Press that the event took place in a province in the southern Philippines, where communist guerrillas were being targeted as part of a mission to stop an uprising. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the sensitive matter in public.
A spokeswoman for the air force, Col. Ma. Consuelo Castillo, said, “We hope to find them and the plane soon and ask that you join us in prayer during this critical time.”
After the accident, it wasn’t clear right away if the rest of the FA-50s would be grounded.
Starting in 2015, the Philippines bought 12 FA-50 multipurpose fighter jets from Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. in South Korea for 18.9 billion pesos, or $331 million. This was the biggest deal in the country’s military upgrade program, which has been held up many times by a lack of funds.
In addition to fighting insurgencies, the jets have participated in major national ceremonies and patrolled the disputed South China Sea.