(Eagle News) — The Philippines has acquired a brand new G280 aircraft as part of the country’s efforts to modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the aircraft produced by the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation and turned over to the Philippine Government on September 17 in Dallas, Texas, will replace the aging aircraft used by the President and other senior officials of the Philippine government in cases of emergency.
“The acquisition of the G280 aircraft is an important component of our efforts to modernize the AFP, representing a priority deliverable for a superior, multi-role aircraft. The G280 will provide our country’s leadership with fast and reliable domestic and regional air transportation, with the command and control capabilities that can facilitate immediate executive decisions wherever in the country or region the aircraft may be, most especially during times of calamity or conflict,” Philippine Embassy in the United States Deputy Chief of Mission Renato Pedro Villa said.
According to Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez, the transfer of the aircraft is significant “not only because it represents what will certainly be a long-term partnership with Gulfstream, but also because it deepens further the level of cooperation and engagement between our two countries.”
According to the DFA, the aircraft, which was acquired under the foreign military sales program of the US government, the aircraft has command and control functions, including extensive and secure communications and monitoring systems.
The Philippine Air Force commissioned the G280 in a ceremony at Clark Air Base in Mabalacat City, Pampanga, Philippines on Sept. 21.
The aircraft ferried high level officials of the COVID Interagency Task Force (IATF) on a pandemic-related assessment trip in its inaugural flight.
Accompanying Villa in turnover ceremonies at the Gulfstream Aerospace facility in Dallas were PAF Col. Rommel Roldan, and B/Gen. Marlo Guloy and Col. Amado Dela Paz, officials of the Office of the Defense and the Armed Forces attaché at the Philippine Embassy, respectively.
