KAI T-50 Golden Eagle
The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle (Korean: 골든이글) is a family of South Korean supersonic advanced jet trainers and light combat aircraft, developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) with Lockheed Martin. It is South Korea's first indigenous supersonic aircraft and one of the world's few supersonic trainers.
| T-50 Golden Eagle | |
|---|---|
| A Republic of Korea Air Force FA-50 carrying a captive training missile on its wingtip | |
| Role | T-50: Advanced jet trainer TA-50: Lead-in fighter trainer FA-50 block 10: Light combat aircraft FA-50 block 20: Light multirole fighter |
| National origin | South Korea |
| Manufacturer | Korea Aerospace Industries Lockheed Martin |
| First flight | 20 August 2002 |
| Introduction | 22 February 2005 |
| Status | In service |
| Primary users | Republic of Korea Air Force Iraqi Air Force Indonesian Air Force Philippine Air Force |
| Produced | 2001–present |
| Number built | 200 (all models) |
Development of the T-50 began in the late 1990s, and its maiden flight occurred in 2002. It entered active service with the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) in 2005. The T-50 has been further developed into aerobatic and combat variants, namely T-50B, TA-50, and FA-50. An F-50 single-seat multirole fighter variant was considered before being cancelled. The T-50B serves with the South Korean air force's aerobatics team.
The T-50 is in service with a number of countries. Iraq received 24 training variants designated T-50IQ in 2016. The TA-50 light attack variant has also been operated by Indonesia, 16 planes entered service by 2014 and an additional 6 aircraft were ordered in 2021. The Philippines operate the FA-50 light fighter variant, 12 of which were delivered over the next few years with the country considering to order another batch of 12 planes. Thailand ordered 12 units of the T-50 advanced trainer variant (T-50TH) starting in 2015. In 2022, Poland ordered 48 FA-50 aircraft, followed by Malaysia in 2023 that ordered 18 of the latest Block 20 variant.