F-16 for Ukraine. Air Force may get six of 45 fighter jets in July – NYT
Less than a full Ukrainian squadron will be ready for combat sorties on F-16 fighters by the summer of this year, but there will not be enough planes for all of them, because by the time the pilots return to Ukraine, only six of the 45 fighters promised by European allies will be delivered F-16, according to the article of The New York Times.
The F-16 fighters are ready, the instructors are waiting at the new training center in Romania, but the Ukrainian pilots have not yet arrived. However, the delay "is a window into the confusion and chaos that has confronted the military alliance’s rush to supply the F-16s."
However, the NYT noted: this does not mean that Ukrainian pilots are not preparing. The 12 pilots are expected to be combat-ready in the F-16 by the summer of 2024 after 10 months of training in Denmark, Britain and the United States.
But by the time the pilots return to Ukraine, of the 45 fighter jets promised by European allies, only six F-16s will be delivered.
The newspaper stressed that the training of Ukrainian pilots on complex Western aircraft has proceeded at lightning speed.
The NYT added that the process is going slower than Ukraine and its allies had hoped because the military has to learn English and Western military practices to effectively use the F-16s.
On December 26, 2023, the first group of six Ukrainian pilots graduated from English language courses in Britain and learned to fly F-16 fighter jets, and now they are learning to fly fighter jets in Denmark.
On January 5, 2024, it was reported that Belgium plans to send two F-16 fighter jets to Denmark and about 50 personnel between March and September 2024 to train Ukrainian pilots.
On February 15, the speaker of the Ministry of Defense Oleksandr Pavliuk reported that the issue of F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine was not discussed at the 19th meeting in the "Ramstein" format, because all decisions had already been made.
On March 1, the spokesman of the command of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Yuriy Ihnat, reported that Ukrainian pilots are already practicing the task of striking air and ground targets on F-16 fighters, training tactical techniques.