Documents
South Korea Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI)
FA-50 Golden Eagle
Light combat variant of the KAI/Lockheed Martin T-50 supersonic trainer family, fitted with a radar, cannon and weapons pylons for light attack and point-defense fighter roles. Exported to the Philippines, Iraq, Poland and Malaysia.
In service since 2013 · 4 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
1,837
km/h
1,851
km range
14,630
m ceiling
4,536
kg payload
0.96
T/W
💲 ≈ $30,000,000, Approximate export unit cost
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
ROK export-licensed
DAPA-administered; aggressive export posture with financing/offset packages.
Channel: Government-to-government
Fielded & proven
Established · 4 operators
In service since 2013. Status: active · ~130 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$75M – $105M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost, operating & support dominate over ~30 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price. How we estimate this →
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data, export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Compatible munitions & weapons
Publicly reported weapons the FA-50 Golden Eagle can carry. Linked items have a full spec page.
Powerplant
The FA-50 Golden Eagle's engine has its own full spec page.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
| Max speed Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance. | 1,837 km/h |
|---|---|
| Max speed (Mach) Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters. | 1.5 Mach |
| Range Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence. | 1,851 km |
| Combat radius Distance an aircraft can fly, complete its mission and return without refueling. Roughly a third of ferry range. | 444 km |
| Service ceiling Maximum operating altitude. Higher gives energy advantage and sensor horizon. | 14,630 m |
| Thrust-to-weight Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up. On a standalone engine record, this is the engine's own thrust divided by its dry weight, the standard figure of merit for jet engines. | 0.96 |
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
| Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type. | 3-barrel 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan cannon |
|---|---|
| Hardpoints External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts. | 7 |
| Weapons payload Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie. | 4,536 kg |
Protection
Armor, countermeasures and survivability.
| Countermeasures Self-protection: chaff, flares, DIRCM, towed decoys, smoke dischargers, jammers. | chaff, flares |
|---|
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
| Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable. | 13.14 m |
|---|---|
| Wingspan Wingtip-to-wingtip span. | 9.45 m |
| Height Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles. | 4.94 m |
| Empty weight Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew. | 6,470 kg |
| Combat weight Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor. | 9,800 kg |
| Crew Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity. | 1 |
Propulsion
Engine, power and fuel.
| Engine Powerplant model and type. | General Electric F404-GE-102 afterburning turbofan |
|---|---|
| Engines Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost. | 1 |
| Thrust Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable). | 78 kN |
| Fuel capacity Internal fuel volume. | 2,655 L |
| Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet… | Turbofan |
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
| Radar Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art. | Elta EL/M-2032 or Israeli-derived multimode radar (variant dependent) |
|---|
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
| Unit cost Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper. | $30,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Units built Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability. | 130 |
| Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem. | 4 |
Specifications compiled from public Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.
Compare with rivals
See how it stacks up
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What is the top speed of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle has a maximum speed of 1,837 km/h.
What is the range of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle has a maximum range of 1,851 km.
What is the weapons payload of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle can carry up to 4,536 kg of weapons payload.
How much does the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle weigh? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle has a combat weight of 9,800 kg.
How many crew does the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle require? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle requires a crew of 1.
What is the main armament of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle's primary weapon is the 3-barrel 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan cannon.
What engine does the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle use? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle is powered by the General Electric F404-GE-102 afterburning turbofan.
What is the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle used for? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle is a fighter aircraft typically used for close air support, multirole combat, air superiority.
How many countries operate the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle is operated by 4 countries.
How much does the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle cost? +
The Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Golden Eagle has an approximate unit cost of 30,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration, treat this as directional.
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