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Air Force T-50 trainer jet overturns after emergency landing

Published: 02 Jan. 2026, 16:54

A T-50 advanced trainer aircraft [JOONGANG ILBO]

A Korean Air Force T-50 advanced trainer aircraft overturned after making an emergency landing during a training flight on Friday afternoon. No casualties were reported.

The Air Force said Friday that a T-50 assigned to Gwangju Air Base made an emergency landing at around 2:36 p.m. after an engine warning light came on during a flight earlier in the afternoon.

The aircraft veered off the runway while taxiing after landing and overturned, according to the Air Force. Both pilots on board were confirmed to be unharmed.

To determine the cause of the accident, the Air Force has set up an accident response headquarters led by Park Ki-wan, the branch's vice chief of staff.

The incident follows a previous accident on Sept. 15, 2025, when a T-50 advanced trainer assigned to Sacheon Air Base in South Gyeongsang also veered off the runway during landing after experiencing a malfunction.

That incident was later found to have been caused by a defect in the power supply unit, prompting concerns that the outcome could have been far more serious had the malfunction occurred mid-flight.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]