RTAF commissions first four T-50TH jet trainers

BANGKOK, April 5 (TNA) -- Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) commander-in-chief officially commissioned the first batch of South Korea-built T-50 Golden Eagle lead-in fighter trainers into service. Four T-50TH supersonic advanced trainers of 401st Squadron was inducted into the RTAF during the commissioning ceremony on April 4 at an airbase in Takhli district of Nakhon Sawan, in a commissioning ceremony presided over by RTAF Commander Air Chief Marshal Johm Rungswang. South Korean ambassador Noh Kwang-il, senior air force officers and chiefs of government offices in Nakhon Sawan and Chai Nat provinces witnessed the event. The T-50 Golden Eagle is an advanced jet trainer developed and manufactured by South Korea's sole aircraft manufacturer, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). KAI received two separate orders from Thailand to build four T-50TH trainer jets in September 2015 and eight T-50TH jets in July last year. The T-50TH developed to train and prepare pilots for the F-16 and JAS-39, replacing trainers such as L-39s in service with the RTAF. (TNA)