Ukraine will soon receive additional F-16s
4 April 02:35
Ukraine will receive additional F-16 fighters from its partners, which are already being prepared for delivery. This was stated by the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Christopher Cavoli, during a hearing at the US Senate Armed Services Committee, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
He reminded that Ukraine already has several F-16s that were provided by partners. Also, several Ukrainian pilots have been trained to fly these fighters.
“There are more F-16s being prepared for deployment. There are even more pilots undergoing training,” Cavoli said.
Ukraine is actively using F-16s, the general noted, flying them every day. The planes helped repel a large number of Russian missile attacks. The fighter jets have also carried out many offensive attacks, including bombing raids in the east.
“None of the F-16s were from the United States. Most of them were from Northern European countries – the Netherlands, Denmark,” Cavoli said.
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F-16 for Ukraine
The United States has led the Ukrainian Air Force Development Capability Coalition in the management of F-16 multi-role fighters. The Netherlands and Denmark became co-chairs.
In August last year, Denmark and the Netherlands promised to provide Ukraine with 61 F-16 fighters. However, on August 20, 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after talks with then-Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte, said that Ukraine would receive a total of 42 American F-16s.
In order for the delivery to begin, it was necessary for Ukrainian pilots and maintenance personnel to be trained and for Ukraine to prepare the infrastructure. As reported by , in May 2024, the first group of Ukrainian pilots completed their F-16 training in the United States and headed to Europe.
Although the first aircraft arrived in August, things are not moving quickly. For example, Belgium plans to hand over most of the planes in 2025. Meanwhile, Ukraine has begun to lose even the units it has.
It is not known for certain how many F-16s are currently in service in Ukraine. In total, Ukraine has been promised more than a hundred F-16s, but at some point.
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