Ibinalita ng Philippine Air Force (PAF) na dalawa sa anim na unit ng Turkish-made T129 “ATAK” attack helicopters na binili ng bansa ang dumating sa Clark Air Base, Pampanga noong Miyerkules ng madaling araw.
“The PAF welcomes the arrival of two units of T129 ‘ATAK’ helicopters onboard the (Airbus) A-400M from Turkey at 30 minutes past midnight 09 March 2022 at Clark Air Base, Mabalacat City, Pampanga,” ayon kay Air Force spokesperson, Lt. Col. Maynard Mariano.
Sa isang hiwalay na mensahe sa Philippine News Agency (PNA), sinabi ni Mariano na isa sa mga A-400M ang nagdala ng dalawang helicopter habang ang isa pang eroplano ang naghatid ng inisyal na logistics requirement ng dalawang T129s.
Sasailalim din ang mga helicopter sa technical inspection at flight tests bago tanggapin para sa serbisyo sa PAF, ayon sa kanya.
“It will undergo inspection, it will undergo acceptance (test), test flights before the acceptance ceremonies can be done and it will go through a lot of orientation in (the) country, together with the pilots and the crew,” ayon kay Mariano.
Idinagdag niya na inaasahan niya na magagamit na ang dalawang T129 helicopter sa loob ng isa o dalawang buwan.
Sinabi ni Mariano na ang Turkish-made attack helicopter ay inaasahang magpapahusay sa “surface strike system” ng Air Force.
Ang anim na T129 ay nakuha ng PAF mula sa Turkish Aerospace Industries alinsunod sa Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Plan – Horizon 2.
Ang 15th Strike Wing ng PAF ang magpapatakbo ng T129s, na gagamitin para sa close-air support para sa ground troops at armadong surveillance at reconnaissance.
“The T129 is a dedicated attack helicopter, much like the (Bell) AH-1S Cobra. This new system will complement the several surface strike systems of the Air Force and will be another game-changer in support to the numerous missions of the AFP. This is the total contract price for the 6 units of T129 helicopters is PHP13,727,248,240. This is to include the logistics support and training of pilots and crew in Turkey,” dagdag niya.
Carlo Juancho FuntanillaFrontend Developer, WordPress, Shopify
Contributing Editor
AMA ACLC San Pablo
