PAF to get 5 new cargo planes

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Air Force (PAF) will get five new C-130J cargo planes to boost its fleet next year for humanitarian and disaster relief operations.

The House of Representatives has approved the request of the PAF for additional funding for the acquisition of the new planes as part of modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which is a priority measure of the Duterte administration.

Upon endorsement by Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, the committee tasked to amend the 2022 General Appropriations Bill has realigned P5.5 billion budget to the AFP for downpayment on the cargo planes.

PAF chief Lt. Gen. Allen Paredes said the PAF needs the three cargo planes for “disaster response, OFW repatriation and troop deployment.”

The C-130J Super Hercules is the newest variation of Lockheed Martin’s C-130 aircraft.

Deputy Speaker Mikee Romero said realigning the budget is part of the House’s commitment to provide better equipment for the Armed Forces.

House good government and public accountability committee chair Mike Aglipay, who also attended the meeting, said the new planes would solve the “decades-old problem of crashes that have cost hundreds of precious lives,” noting that the latest C-130 crash happened in Sulu just two months ago.