Malaysia sends RFI for light combat aircraft and armed UAVs

The Wing Loong II (Pterodactyl II) unmanned combat aerial vehicle from AVIC. Photo c/o AIN.

The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) confirmed that the service sent Request for Information (RFI) last January 2019 to select manufacturers for light combat aircraft (LCA) and armed Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAV).

Malaysian defense page Malaysia Defence reported that the RFIs for light combat aircraft were sent to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) for the FA-50 Golden Eagle, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for the Tejas, and to Pakistan for the JF-17 Thunder. RFIs for for UCAV were sent to General Atomics for the MQ-9B Sea Guardian, AVIC for the Wing Loong II, and Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) for the Anka.

It was previously reported by Asia Pacific Defense Journal that HAL was previously invited to send a Tejas light combat aircraft to the upcoming LIMA 2019 defense exhibition in Malaysia, while RMAF already evaluated the JF-17 Thunder.

Malaysia Defence mentioned that funding for both LCA and armed UAV are not yet provided, although they were included in the RMAF’s CAP 55 Modernization and Reorganization Plan.



[1] Malaysia Defence
[2] Malaysia Defence