Malaysia becomes the second export customer for the FA-50, pictured here in Republic of Korea Air Force livery.
SINGAPORE—After a half-decade evaluation and tender process, Malaysia has signed the letter of acceptance for 18 Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Block 20 aircraft under its Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Phase 1 program.
KAI said the deal is worth KRW1.2 trillion ($920 million) and deliveries will commence from 2026.
The South Korean aircraft edged out the Yak-130, MiG-35, HAL Tejas, TAI Hurizet and Sino-Pakistan JF-17. Malaysia had downselected the Tejas and FA-50 for final evaluations.
The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) will become the second export customer for the Block 20 after Poland, and the fourth T-50 operator in Southeast Asia. KAI said the FA-50 had been selected by Malaysia for its satisfactory results in neighboring nations.
Phase 2 of the LCA is expected to see another 18 aircraft acquired. The LCA program is part of the RMAF CAP55 vision to streamline its aircraft fleet into two combat aircraft types. This effort was accelerated after Malaysia’s decision to shelve the Multi Role Combat Aircraft program.
Present at the signing for the FA-50s from the South Korean side was KAI President and CEO Kang Goo-young, Republic of Korea Air Force Chief of Staff Jung Sang-hwa and Deputy Defense Acquisition Program Administration Chief Kang Hwan-seok.
