On Wednesday, June 18, 2025, the Armament Agency announced the results of an open tender procedure for the supply of a batch of 20×102 mm ammunition for M197 (M61A2 Vulcan) onboard cannons, intended for the KAI FA-50GF Fighting Eagle light combat aircraft in the Block 10 configuration. The procedure, launched on February 7 of this year, marked the third attempt to procure ammunition for the twelve Korean-made aircraft.
Photo: Jakub Link-Lenczowski, MILMAG
The contract covers the supply of the following types of ammunition:
- HEI M56A3 high-explosive incendiary rounds (MIL-C-46578, NSN 1305-00-965-0560) – 50,000 units
- TP M55A2 training rounds (MIL-C-46552, NSN 1305-00-180-9268) – 50,000 units
Entities from the European Union, the United States, Turkey, and South Korea were eligible to submit bids. The application deadline was June 6 (originally set for March 12).
In the first lot, bids were submitted by Megmar Logistic & Consulting from Kutno and MILDAT from Warsaw. The evaluation criteria were price (80%) and warranty (20%). Megmar received 58.89 points for price and 20 points for warranty (total: 78.89 points), while MILDAT scored 80 points for price and 20 points for warranty (total: 100 points).
The same bidders submitted offers for the second lot, under the same evaluation criteria. Megmar received 48.91 points for price and 20 for warranty (total: 68.91 points), while MILDAT again received 80 points for price and 20 for warranty (total: 100 points).
This means that the Armament Agency will soon sign contracts with MILDAT for the supply of both the HEI M56A3 combat ammunition and the TP M55A2 training rounds. According to information obtained by MILMAG, MILDAT offered ammunition manufactured by MKE (Turkey), while Megmar most likely proposed Korean-made rounds produced by Poongsan. As a result, the 20×102 mm rounds for the cannons of Poland’s FA-50GF aircraft will be supplied from Turkey.
MKE supplies both HEI M56A3 combat rounds and TP M55A2 training rounds. Each has a total length of 168.02 mm and a mass of approximately 258 g and 255 g, respectively (with projectile mass of about 101 g and 100 g). Muzzle velocity is rated at 1030 ±15 m/s. The ammunition uses ball propellant.
Third time’s the charm
The successful conclusion of the procurement process brings an end to the long-running saga of acquiring 20mm ammunition for the Korean-made aircraft.
The first tender, launched on March 1, 2023, followed a restricted procedure but was cancelled on September 26, 2023, due to a lack of bids. At that time, the contracting authority was seeking a supplier for 72,000 rounds of live ammunition, 72,000 rounds of training ammunition, and 36,000 rounds of tracer ammunition.
The second tender, launched on April 30, 2024, was again cancelled on October 16, 2024, for the same reason. This time, the procurement covered 90,000 HEI M56A3 high-explosive incendiary rounds and 90,000 TP M55A2 training rounds.
The armament of the FA-50GF Block 10 variant includes a wide range of air-launched weapons, such as AIM-9L/M/P/G Sidewinder air-to-air missiles (a small batch has been under procurement since October 2023—editor’s note), AGM-65 Maverick air-to-ground missiles, and several types of aerial bombs, including 227-kg general-purpose Mark 82 bombs, CBU-105 cluster munitions, and Mk 20 Rockeye II. While the Polish Air Force already holds some quantities of Maverick missiles and Mk 80-series bombs (previously used by F-16s), it does not currently possess AIM-9L/M/P/G missiles—though there are plans to acquire them. The maximum weapon payload of the FA-50GF is 4.5 tonnes.
