Talk:Philippine Air Force/Temp

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) is the air force of the Philippines. Its official name in Filipino (Tagalog) is Hukbong Panghimpapawid ng Pilipinas.

History
The Philippine Air Force was established on July 1, 1947, making it one of the earliest independent air forces in Asia. It was also one of the best-equipped air forces during the 1950s and 1960s, with its P-51D Mustangs, and F-86D/F Sabre jets.

Aircraft
At present the backbone of the PAF inventory consists of:


 * Aermacchi S-211 for ground support and jet training
 * Aermacchi SF-260TP/WP for primary training and counter-insurgency (COIN)
 * North American Rockwell OV-10A/D Bronco for light ground attack
 * Hughes MG-520 Defender and Sikorsky S-76 attack helicopters
 * Lockheed C-130B/H Hercules, and Bell UH-1H Huey helicopters for transport duties
 * Fokker F28, mainly for the official domestic trips of the president of the Philippines
 * Fokker F-27, mainly as support to the C-130s
 * Cessna T-41, used for primary training

Wherever possible the PAF has relied on local skills for modification projects as in the recent Huey II program.

The Philippine Air Force retired its fleet of F-5A/B Freedom Fighters with a ceremony on October 1, 2005.

Expansion
The planned purchase of modern fighter aircraft, with the F-16 Fighting Falcon, JAS 39C/D Gripen, F/A-18 Hornet, or the KAI T-50 Golden Eagle being the most popular choices, has been put on hold as the PAF concentrates in bringing its current fleet of aircraft into current and flyable standards. However, Air Force officials are trying to acquire surplus F-5E/F Tiger II   aircraft from various countries as an interim solution to its need for fighter aircraft.

Current efforts are concentrated on the acquisition of aircraft for counter-insurgency (COIN) operations. The purchase of 6 second hand attack helicopters is given the highest priority, with ex-USMC AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters being the top choice. The purchase of more transport aircraft is also a priority.

Air Bases
The Philippine Air Force has nine air bases located throughout the Philippine archipelago:


 * Clark Air Base, Pampanga
 * Cesar Basa Air Base, Pampanga
 * Jesus Villamor Air Base, Pasay City
 * Danilo Atienza Air Base, Cavite
 * Fernando Air Base, Batangas
 * Antonio Bautista Air Base, Palawan
 * Benito Ebuen Air Base, Cebu
 * Edwin Andrews Air Base, Zamboanga
 * Rajah Buayan Air Base, General Santos City, South Cotabato