Iraq says to receive four more T-50 warplanes from S. Korea this month
Korean T-50 jet fighters
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi military said on Tuesday that a new batch of South Korean KAI T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic advanced trainers and light combat aircraft will arrive in Iraq this month.
The Iraqi Air Force, in a statement released on Tuesday, announced that four T-50 trainer jets have been already shipped over from South Korea and will arrive in Iraq later this month.
The Iraqi army received in March 2017 the first batch of the South Korean combat aircraft.
The second shipment was delivered in May 2018.
In December 2013, Iraq signed a contract for 24 South Korean T-50 fighter jets, plus additional equipment and pilot training over the next 20 years.
The contract was initially estimated at $1.1 billion, but the manufacturer Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) later put the figure beyond $2 billion.The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle’s maiden flight occurred in 2002.
The aircraft entered active service with the Republic of Korea Air Force in 2005.