Poland to buy 48 Korean FA-50 aircraft, 180 K2 tanks

Poland is about to buy 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft and at least 180 K2 Black Panther tanks from South Korea.

wPolityce reported about the relevant announcement made by Deputy Prime Minister of Poland, Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak.

According to his statement, the first batch of K2 tanks by Hyundai Rotem will arrive in Poland later this year.

The batch of 180 tanks is just the first order. More tanks will be purchased and eventually they will be produced in Poland.

“…as for K2 Black Panther i.e. K2 tanks.This year, the first units will be delivered and in total there will be 180 tanks in the first order. Ultimately, these tanks will be produced in Poland,” Blaszczak clarified.

It is also reported that negotiations for the purchase of FA-50 are about to end. The Polish Air Force plans to acquire three squadrons of these light combat aircraft.

The outdated Soviet fighters will be replaced by FA-50 fighter jets.

“We are interested in purchasing three squadrons, that is 48 aircraft. The first aircraft would be delivered to Poland next year. We are finalizing negotiations on this matter, we are close to completion. In general, this will be a leap in the combat capability of our army,” the Minister said.

In May, during meetings in Seoul, Minister Blaszczak spoke about strengthening the defense potential of the Polish Army with the participation of South Korean arms production companies.

The K2 Black Panther is a South Korean main battle tank. The combat vehicle was developed by the South Korean Defense Development Agency and the Hyundai Rotem company. The tank is armed with a 120 mm L55 smoothbore gun. Ammunition of the first stage (7 shots) is placed in the loading mechanism of the “belt conveyor” type, which provides a rapid rate of fire of 20 shots per minute.

The FA-50 is the combat version of the T-50, which is used for strike and reconnaissance missions. KAI T-50 Golden Eagle is a family of South Korean supersonic jet trainers and light combat aircraft developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in collaboration with Lockheed Martin.